Strauss will deliver, insist Ashes heroes

Words of wisdom: former England captain Michael Vaughan (right) gives struggling new skipper Andrew Strauss a helping hand

Sam Peters

13 April 2012

Andrew Strauss heads into the third one-day international with glowing endorsements of his captaincy credentials from two of the most influential players in the England dressing room.

Fit again all-rounder Andrew Flintoff and former captain Michael Vaughan have both backed the Middlesex opener to succeed as skipper despite a difficult first tour that has seen the tourists record just one victory.

There have been question marks over Strauss's position in the limited overs XI although he did his best to show the selectors that he deserves his place with a battling hundred against the West Indies in the last one-day international in Guyana.

Vaughan, who has his sights set on a return to the Test team ahead of this summer's Ashes, has no doubt Strauss will prove his worth.

"Andrew is the right man and a very, very good leader," said Vaughan.

"Certainly for the long term I hope he is going to be captain for the Ashes and well beyond that. I think he creates stability around the team. There's a lot of talent in that England dressing room, it's just about trying to nurture that talent into a winning formula.

"We just have to get that winning momentum back to the team."

Flintoff's return at the Bridgetown Oval following a spell on the sidelines with a hip strain will balance the side and provide Strauss with much-needed extra firepower with bat and ball.

Like Vaughan, Flintoff believes Strauss is the man to lead England in both forms of the game.

"Straussy just scored a hundred in his last one-day international and was probably our best player," said Flintoff. "All this talk about split captaincy is nonsense. Strauss is our captain, he's the one who tosses the coin and leads the team on the field."

Flintoff is likely to replace Steve Harmison in Barbados with Jimmy Anderson's place seemingly safe after he was rewarded for some superb bowling this winter with a haul of three for 37 from nine overs in Guyana.

A series of debilitating back injuries and constant tinkering with his action have hindered the 26-year-old Lancastrian's progress after he burst onto the international scene six years ago.

But with 103 one-day internationals and 35 caps under his belt, Andersonhas reverted to his natural action that sees his head facing the floor at the point of delivery. "I've pretty much gone full circle," said Anderson. "I've had a few changes but gradually got back to where I started. It's more natural and it's how I was when I first started and feels more comfortable.

"I think I've been bowling well for a reasonable amount of time and I've got some consistency going, which I've been searching for the last few years."

The West Indies players are again expected to tape over sponsors emblems on their shirts after failing to resolve a pay dispute with their cricket board.

NEW ZEALAND were rescued by a record fourth-wicket partnership of 271 from Ross Taylor and Jesse Ryder as they closed the opening day of the Second Test with India in Napier on 351 for four.

Taylor was on 151 and just three runs shy of his highest Test score when he was caught off a delivery from Harbhajan Singh. It was a relief for India, who paid for Yuvraj Singh dropping Taylor after he made just four.

Ryder was unbeaten on 137 for the hosts, who had been in trouble early on, slumping to 23 for three.

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Strauss will deliver, insist Ashes heroes

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