Strauss condemns shoddy sacking of Cook

ANDREW STRAUSS has accused the England and Wales Cricket Board of being ‘‘hugely disrespectful’’ to Alastair Cook in the manner of his sacking as England’s one-day captain, and claimed the image of the governing body had ‘‘taken a battering every bit as significant as the reputation of some of its players’’ over the past year.

Writing in The Sunday Times, Strauss said: ‘‘Refusing to talk about Kevin Pietersen’s banishment from the team, allowing Cook to carry the can for the move, leaking the dossier on Pietersen’s misdemeanours at the precise moment it should have been taking the moral high ground, and now filtering the news of Cook’s demotion through to the Twittersphere and other unofficial channels smacks of clumsy subterfuge or incompetence, or both.’’ Such stinging criticism from Strauss, Cook’s predecessor as one-day captain, will hurt the cricket board.

Strauss is respected

as

being among the most measured of the present media pundits, as well as the man who led England through the most successful period in their recent history.

The board finally confirmed Cook was making way for Eoin Morgan on Saturday, about 17 hours after the news first broke.

Despite his low opinion of the board’s handling of the situation, Strauss believes the selectors’ decision was correct.

‘‘The humdrum surrounding Cook was starting to distract and affect England’s chances at the World Cup, as much as his lack of runs,’’ Strauss said.

Essex all-rounder Ravi Bopara was the first of the World Cup squad, after Morgan, to comment on the change.

‘‘Form is the most thing,’’ Bopara said.

‘‘If you are scoring runs on the park, then you are down to get selected and unfortunately for Alastair that was not the case.

‘‘It is time to move on and think about the things that Morgan can do for us.’’

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