Strauss: ’England can handle pressure’
Güncelleme Tarihi:
AFP
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Temmuz 08, 2009 00:00
CARDIFF - England captain Andrew Strauss goes into today's first Test against Australia confident his developing side have the character required to cope with the pressure of Ashes cricket in Cardiff.
England's form since winning the 2005 Ashes has been mediocre and when the Ashes were last up for grabs, in 2006/07, they were thrashed 5-0 in Australia.
Since Strauss was thrust into the captaincy in January, after Kevin Pietersen's falling out with then coach Peter Moores, England has lost a series in the Caribbean and beaten lowly West Indies at home this season.
Strauss, who has repeatedly emphasized the importance of keeping a cool head, told reporters Monday: "The key to the series is how you handle those pressure moments and there are going to be plenty of them.
"That's going to be a bit of a test of character and a bit of a test of courage and technique. You have to be prepared for that and be mentally switched on enough to come through that, come out the other side and then apply the pressure on the opposition."
"An Ashes series is slightly different and we've only got probably half our team that have played in an Ashes series before," Strauss added.
"I've got very few concerns in my own head that there are any weak links and that's encouraging."
Since Strauss was thrust into the captaincy in January, after Kevin Pietersen's falling out with then coach Peter Moores, England has lost a series in the Caribbean and beaten lowly West Indies at home this season.
Strauss, who has repeatedly emphasized the importance of keeping a cool head, told reporters Monday: "The key to the series is how you handle those pressure moments and there are going to be plenty of them.
"That's going to be a bit of a test of character and a bit of a test of courage and technique. You have to be prepared for that and be mentally switched on enough to come through that, come out the other side and then apply the pressure on the opposition."
"An Ashes series is slightly different and we've only got probably half our team that have played in an Ashes series before," Strauss added.
"I've got very few concerns in my own head that there are any weak links and that's encouraging."