Graeme Swann able to laugh in face of convention

Graeme Swann has more than 16,000 followers on Twitter, the internet's latest social networking craze, another ideal platform for his student-union wit and waspish humour. He's fast becoming a cult figure even as, at 30, his irrepressible personality matures. Speaking to the Times, Swann candidly admits he does not really do cricket at all if there is a reasonable alternative, such as loafing on the couch with a can of beer and a movie on the telly. While some players would be angered by accusations of arrogance, Swann shrugs them off with his characteristic laconic humour.

“You get pigeonholed, but if the s*** hits the fan, everyone reacts differently. If I get angry and uptight, I am rubbish. I don’t perform. If people see me having a smile on my face as not knuckling down, then more fool them because they don’t know what they are talking about.

“I have just found over the years I am my own best shrink and I know if I am doing badly. Nine times out of ten, it is about taking it too seriously. I don’t mean stop training and start having a laugh, but in your life you have to be happy."