Andrew Strauss withdraws from England duty with dignity and in credit - The Guardian

There were no tears, a few smiles (especially when he mused about becoming a new cricket correspondent for the Sun), and much dignity. When he had finished there was even a round of applause from the gaggle of cynical old hacks, which is a real rarity.

Andrew Strauss looked comfortable with his decision to retire from all forms of professional cricket that he announced on Wednesday. Of course, he was sad and sincere. But he also seemed happy – and maybe a tad relieved – to be moving on while people were still asking "why?" rather than "when?" And he was adamant that the answer to the "why" question had nothing to do with Kevin Pietersen.

"I've been talking about it [retiring] for a while," he explained. "I first spoke to Andy [Flower] about it prior to the whole Kevin Pietersen incident rearing its head. That just hasn't been a consideration at all. I was pretty sure I was going to make this decision before the Pietersen situation arose."

The three representatives of the England and Wales Cricket Board – Strauss, the managing director, Hugh Morris, and the captain-elect, Alastair Cook, did not wish to dwell on Pietersen, but those asking the questions did. So for a while the ECB trio had no choice.

"I didn't feel what happened undermined me in the eyes of the team," said Strauss. "It was obviously a difficult situation to deal with, but not in terms of making me more or less keen to lead the side forward."

By the end of the press conference we were none the wiser how the Pietersen saga would unfold. Hugh Morris had his script and he was sticking to it. "Andy Flower and myself will be seeking to meet with Kevin to discuss where we are at the moment. We'll be doing that in due course behind closed doors." Understandably they wanted this to be about Strauss.

The outgoing captain has been a clinical strategist over the years but the reasons he gave for going were simple. "It's one of these decisions where you just know in your heart when the time is up. I knew that probably before the South Africa series started and certainly by the end of the series I was fairly clear in my mind."

He cited his batting as a critical factor in his decision to go. "The driver to it all was, quite frankly, my form with the bat. I haven't batted well enough for a long period of time now and I think for a captain to perform in his role properly it's important, firstly, you're not a passenger in the side but also that people aren't speculating as to whether you should be in the side or not. I think that would have been a big distraction to the side going forward. I know with my own energy levels and motivation, I wasn't going to improve my batting; I'd run my race."

He said that no one tried to dissuade him but this was not because they all wanted him to go. Flower and Strauss have always been at one in a rock-solid alliance that has taken England to remarkable heights over the last three-and-a-half years. They took over amid chaos in January 2009, when both the captain, Pietersen, and the coach, Peter Moores, had, respectively, resigned and been sacked within the space of a couple days and they charted two famous Ashes victories as well as England's progression to No1 status in Test cricket, which was lost after the recent South Africa series. Flower would have been Strauss's confidant all along.

"I first spoke to Andy about this a few weeks ago; I said I was considering it and I'd talk to him at the end of the series. But by the time I spoke to him again my mind was made up and I think he knew that. It's a hugely sad moment in a lot of ways, saying goodbye to team-mates, and Andy in particular has been a great support for me.

"But I only wrote letters to the players yesterday, I haven't spoken to them. I didn't want to be influenced by anyone else. It's very much a personal decision. You know when your time's up and the time is right. I have always looked at this [South Africa] series as a bit of a crossroads moment.

"If I'd been playing really well and the team were doing really well, that might have been enough motivation to push through for the next two Ashes series. But I've not been playing well enough and the team has had some difficult moments. That helped me make my decision."

And so he left head held high, promising to see more of his family and to lower his golf handicap. He will be back before long in some capacity. He has so much to offer. But for the moment in possibly a rare moment of mischief he admitted: "I will be an interested spectator."

England, meanwhile, have rested Graeme Swann for the last three matches of the one-day series against South Africa, with James Tredwell called up as cover. The Nottinghamshire off-spinner, who has a right-elbow problem, will return for the three-game Twenty20 series.