As Andrew Strauss sits in the hospitality tent at the exclusive Hurlingham Club in west London, the ‘all-you-can-eat lunch’ menu includes succulent lamb, beef and roses. But she admits she feels “very bitter” after damaging her self-esteem.
Strauss played padel with professional players – a squash/tennis hybrid – but lost 6-4 in the semi-finals of the first Alfred Dunhill Padel Classic against Fame. Indeed, on the other side of the tie is another man whose competitive spirit seems unlikely to retire: James Anderson.
For Strauss, it’s an opportunity to catch Anderson after confirming he will retire from international cricket after England’s first Test of the summer: “Just congratulate him and talk about his plans going forward. Right, he’s going to get his stock. He wants to do well and finish on a real high.
“I really hope that he receives a good send-off in God. People have been talking about this moment for years – on the one hand, we began to think that it would never come. This is an amazing career with amazing endurance and it will continue. Playing sports at the highest level is not easy, bowling is more difficult.
Anderson was an integral part of Strauss’s ICC-ranked England team: last in Australia in the 2010-11 Ashes, he made 21 in four Tests against India. next heat “He’s really reliable,” Straus said.
“He’s one of those bowlers where you know what you’re going to get every time. He’s got competitive fire, instinct and incredible skill. Any captain would want him in his team. The other thing is he’s always fit: he was – or at least , rarely – get injured – It’s sad to think that it’s his first appearance in England.
However, Strauss, who was appointed England’s managing director of men’s cricket two years ago, believes he made the right call alongside Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes. “In this position you always have to compare prospects. Right or wrong, we will judge our Test team by the way we did in the Ashes series.
“There are only a handful of fixtures between now and the next Ashes [18, including Anderson’s farewell to the West Indies], and even Jimmy himself will admit that the next Ashes is a stretch. There are games for some new and big players. Holes to fill last summer [ Stuart] is relieved he will be gone, and if you think about Anderson today, it is very difficult to replace them overnight.
“They are both very reliable and high-class bowlers, so they have to put in time and energy and let other people take on those leadership roles. I think it’s the right opportunity. Often you don’t fully appreciate what you’re missing until you leave – but you have to there is life after James Anderson.
When Strauss was appointed to his current Key role in 2015, he decided to move on from England’s Anderson and Broad in white-ball cricket. “They are both very good performers, but they contribute more to Test cricket and you always think with a bowler, how do you make sure you don’t beat them? I would like to think that both careers increase.”
But when he returned to work on a temporary basis at the start of 2022, calls to leave Anderson and Broad at home as England toured the Caribbean following Australia’s 4-0 Ashes defeat blindsided both players. “There’s always a balance between focusing on team strengths and thinking about how to improve competitively,” Strauss said.
“You go into the midfield and talk to people about what is wrong with this set-up. No one doubted that Broad and Anderson can come home and play at home; if they play away from home, they will have to. They have shown. they have more a lot of life for them.
“But the principle is the same: England is poorer at home, so the focus has always been on finding bowlers who can perform abroad. The skills required away from home are a bit different. We need them at home – natural fast bowlers, on the contrary. good spinners, something our game does not produce – so “You have to play the game for people who have potential.”
