Strauss to miss the rest of England tour
Director of cricket’s wife is diagnosed with cancer ECB wants a full-time manager for future trips
England’s troubled Ashes tour suffered another setback last night when it emerged that Andrew Strauss, the director of England cricket, would miss the rest of the series because his wife Ruth has cancer.
The tourists are already 2-0 down going into a must-win third Test in Perth but Strauss returned home immediately after the second Test in Adelaide. He was expected to return to Australia for the final two Tests but a spokesman for the England and Wales Cricket Board said: “Andrew Strauss will not return to the Ashes this winter. His wife, Ruth, has been diagnosed with cancer and is going through a series of medical tests before Christmas. His family need Andrew’s full support.”
Apart from the two defeats so far, England’s tour has been bedevilled by off-field problems. The ECB is now considering appointing a fulltime tour manager who will be able to deal with any future disciplinary issues. The ECB wants a former player to take the job in time for next winter’s tours to Sri Lanka and West Indies.
Trevor Bayliss, the head coach, is understood not to want to handle discipline beyond cricket issues and has not enjoyed standing in front of the media to explain the offfield incidents that have dogged the tour. He is employed to coach the team and will be mindful of his relationship with players. Coaches in cricket do not have the power of football managers, and Bayliss will be aware of the danger of a rift developing between him and the team over discipline.
Strauss is based in London and unable to spend months on tour. Phil Neale is operations manager on tour, but his job is mainly dealing with the logistics of hotels and travel. Strauss dealt with the fallout from the Jonny Bairstow “butt” incident but his absence will be felt.
The new post would have wider responsibilities, handling media interviews beyond on-field issues, such as security or discipline, and liaising with the ECB board.
It is thought that having a former cricketer is important to give them credibility with the players and an understanding of what touring life is like, but they will also have to be of an age that means they have no ties to the current team.
It will mean adding to England’s already substantial back-room team but the board feels the Ashes tour, and last year’s trip to Bangladesh, where security was such a big issue, have shown the importance of appointing a figurehead to take the strain off the coach and leave him to concentrate on cricket.
Australia also have a team manager. Steve Bernard, the former New South Wales cricketer, did the job for 13 years before retiring, to be replaced by Gavin Dovey, who was formerly the England rugby team operations manager.
For the past decade, Mohammed Moosajee, a qualified doctor, has been the manager of the South Africa team, doubling up as a medical expert as well as a spokesman on off-field issues.
England named an unchanged team for the third Test after nets at the Waca yesterday, confirming that Bairstow had been promoted to No6, swapping with Moeen Ali. Moeen drops to seven to break up the run of left-handers in the lower middle order who have been preyed upon by Nathan Lyon.
Joe Root defended the coaching staff, saying James Anderson was “slightly harsh” for criticising them in his column in The Daily Telegraph this week for not advising the bowlers to recalibrate their lengths in the first innings at Adelaide, where England sent Australia in to bat but failed to capitalise.
Writing for The Telegraph about the second Test, Anderson said: “In Adelaide in the first innings I probably bowled too short. They were not going anywhere at two an over but we were not taking wickets. We should have bowled a touch fuller. It was an oversight from the players on the field but also from the coaches, who could have had an input, too, which is frustrating.”
Root denied any breakdown in communication. “I think the relationship [between the coaches and players] has been really good.
“We got it wrong on the field. It’s probably slightly harsh to put the blame on to the coaches.”