Trescothick building his road back
Many reasons have been put forward for England's flagging Test fortunes since the 2005 Ashes, but the absence of key players has hit the team's hopes
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
Many reasons have been put forward for England's flagging Test fortunes since the 2005 Ashes, but the absence of key players has hit the team's hopes. Obviously Andrew Flintoff's injuries have been crucial, but so too has the missing top-order skills of Marcus Trescothick. He has been away from the international scene for well over a year and England have struggled to replace his flamboyant and tone-setting contributions. However, after an aborted attempt at returning Trescothick is in no rush to risk his health again, although as he tells Ivo Tennant in the Times he can see light at the end of the tunnel.
Taunton is a small, relaxed town and Trescothick does not desire to live elsewhere. He spoke yesterday of his hopes of coaching Somerset after he retires - he is 32 and, ideally, would like to play until he is 40 - although he wants to do so in conjunction with running a business of some kind. He lives near the ground; Musgrove Hospital, where his second child will be born, is two miles away - “I don’t know whether it is a boy or a girl, but two children is probably enough” - and he can walk the streets unbothered even by the cider swillers.
Andrew McGlashan is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo