Strauss captaincy under scrutiny
August 26, 2010 10:29:43 UK
Andrew Strauss is facing one of the most testing weeks of his career, as the England captain looks to close out the Test series with Pakistan and rediscover his form with the bat.
England head into today's fourth and final npower Test leading Pakistan 2-1 in the series. Match betting has England fancied at 1.80, while Pakistan are 6.00 and the draw is 2.87.
As a captain, you do what you think is right.
Andrew Strauss
While Strauss' dip in form could not yet be described as alarming, nor his leadership come under serious scrutiny after their comprehensive loss in the third Test, he will be eager to set the record straight.
By losing the match at the Oval England forfeited an opportunity to establish the joint-longest winning run in their history.
And such is the nature of Test cricket that once Alastair Cook silenced his doubters with a hundred last week, someone else's relative lack of productivity must provide the focus.
However Strauss has heard it all before, saying: "There are always going to be question marks and people saying you should have done things differently - that is the nature of the beast."
"What is clear is you shouldn't be focusing on what other people say outside the group.
"You should focus on within the group, and I'm comfortable in that respect."
Andrew Strauss is 4.50 to be England's top batsman in the first innings, and it is 11.00 that the England captain is named man of the match.
It is 18 months since Strauss succeeded the sacked Kevin Pietersen as captain - and after a wobbly start, Ashes success and a drawn series in South Africa have followed.
"As a captain, you do what you think is right," he believes.
"Ultimately you don't second-guess yourself; you go with your convictions, and it is for other people to judge whether it is a good idea or not.
"As soon as you start questioning yourself, it is a dangerous place. I'm not trying to prove myself as a captain; I'm just doing what I think is right.
"Generally we've been successful with that."
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