That has to be their ambition, to reach that level of performance. They have the best possible example right there with them in the dressing room in Joe Root in terms of what world-class performance looks like. “The players have to hold up their hands and accept they have to get better. “You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see performances have been poor for the last 12 months, and anyone who thinks otherwise is deluding themselves,” Strauss said. But for me he’s a great example to those young players and he needs our support right now.” At the same time, Strauss also put some pressure on the players to step up.Īndrew Strauss is charged with appointing an interim head coach for the three Tests in the Caribbean. At some stage in the future we will have a new managing director, a new head coach, they will look at things with fresh eyes. “At this moment in time he is 100% the right person to take the team forward. “I’ve spoken to Joe, and his commitment to taking this side forward is absolutely clear,” said Strauss. In the short term, the West Indies tour will be a clear opportunity for Root and the rest of the squad to prove they ought to be part of that future. Strauss also said the ECB board are about to approve and appoint a panel to run “a full independent review into the role and structure of the first class game, with particular focus on its suitability to produce international cricketers”. He will look to restore some sort of national selector’s role after it was scrapped last year, and help appoint a new full-time managing director and head coach.

He has ruled himself out of taking on his old job as managing director in the long term, but in the next few weeks he is going to help plan the way forward for English Test cricket.

“The only way we can look at it is to get through the West Indies tour, which is about five weeks on duty, and then there is some time after that to take a step back and think strategically about the needs of the England cricket team both now and over the next five to 10 years,” Strauss said.

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