Andrew Strauss announced his retirement from professional cricket. He's been one of our favourite captains thus far and we doubt that's going to change anytime soon. As sad as we are to see ‘Straussey’ retire, we believe he’s made the right choice for the England team. He stated in the press conference earlier today that his decision to retire from cricket was purely based on the fact that he has not been scoring runs like he should have and that he believes he’s ‘run his race.’ It is nice to see cricketers out there who call it quits with their dignity and integrity intact. Shows that they do not go after money and fame like some of them do.
Strauss has done so much over the years since his test debut in 2004. He scored a century on debut, has gotten 7000+ test runs, has gone on to win 100 Test caps, captained the side in 50 of those matches, scored 21 Test centuries & six ODI hundreds, has been part of three Ashes wins in which he's captained two and has helped England get to No.1 in Test cricket! The list goes on! Since the appointment of his captaincy —and Andy Flower coming in as England coach— we've had the opportunity to see the team grow and overcome so many obstacles and boundaries to reach goals. He has stressed over and over the importance of trust and respect within a team. We believe the two Andys were the backbone behind building that trust and respect within the strong England side we see today; and for that we believe we should thank and applaud them.
Integrity, humility, dedication, magnanimity, assertiveness, fairness, calmness and selflessness are a few of the many qualities Strauss had! He epitomises a great leader. He’s been a selfless cricketer, shying away from the limelight whenever possible, when it came to personal milestones. That is rare in the world of cricket nowadays with so many players caring more about their personal fame, fortune and reputation, rather than the team’s overall image.
We believe he’s been one of England’s BEST captains so far! We will miss the talented, calm, cool, smiley, level-headed and lovely character whenever we watch England come out to bat or field. He’s an England legend in our eyes.
Before concluding, we’ve picked our top 5 moments in Straussey’s career...
TOP 5 ANDREW STRAUSS MOMENTS
1. Test debut and maiden century at Lord’s his home ground...
2. One of the defining moments of the 2005 Ashes series - catching Adam Gilchrist off of Andrew Flintoff at Trent Bridge...
3. Captained the England side in England's first Ashes win down under since 1987...
4. Took England to the top of world Test rankings by defeating India...
5. 100th Test appearance and 50 as captain at Lord’s...
We want to wish the very best of luck to you, Straussey. We are proud of your achievements and we want to thank you for all the great memories. It has been an absolute pleasure to watch you play, captain and lead the England team to glory. Thank you!
As one era comes to a close another begins. All the best to Alastair Cook, the newly appointed England Test captain. May this be a long and successful career as England's Test captain!
Will never forget the day Strauss demolished his sunglasses - not on purpose obviously! Enjoy the clip below ;)
~ The Broadettes ~
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