The end will come for all captains
In the wake of Andrew Strauss's retirement, Suresh Menon on www.cricketnext.com , writes that in the end all captains must go - a sudden lack of form, an unexpected defeat, unshakeable self-doubt - it doesn't matter what form it takes
Akhila Ranganna
25-Feb-2013
In the wake of Andrew Strauss's retirement, Suresh Menon on www.cricketnext.com, writes that in the end all captains must go - a sudden lack of form, an unexpected defeat, unshakeable self-doubt - it doesn't matter what form it takes. There is finality. Things come together. And it is the end.
You leave with dignity and class, like Andrew Strauss did; or kicking and screaming like Sourav Ganguly. Suddenly, nothing matters. Not past record, not current form, not recent promise, not the experience or unfulfilled plans. Would Strauss have kept his job if left to the selectors? Perhaps not, and he recognised this.
"My race is done," was Strauss' simple goodbye. Modern captains know that the ability to recognise the monster is as important as tactical nous or man management.
Akhila Ranganna is assistant editor (Audio) at ESPNcricinfo