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| April 28, 2003 | Monday | Safar 25, 1424 |
Hussain wants to be England’s best captain
LONDON, April 27: Nasser Hussain has set himself the target of becoming England’s most successful Test captain.
With two home Tests against Zimbabwe followed by a five-Test series against South Africa later this year, Hussain has the opportunity to jump to the top of the standings for most victories in charge.
“I want to captain England in more Test matches than anyone else and, above all, I want to captain England in more test victories than anybody else,” Hussain wrote in a column for the Sunday Telegraph.
The 35-year-old Hussain has captained his country on 42 occasions with only Michael Atherton (54) ahead of him. He is also third on the all-time list for victories with 15, behind Mike Brearley (18) and Peter May (20).
“When I was younger, I wasn’t a stats man but, the nearer you get to these milestones, the more important they become,” added Hussain, who has also set his sights on playing another 19 Test matches to reach the 100-mark.
Apart from his personal ambitions, though, Hussain knows his side’s home Test matches this English summer are vitally important following the 4-1 drubbing they received at the hands of Australia in the recent Ashes series.
“The main responsibility is to get England playing like we did before the tour of Australia,” said Hussain, who stepped down as England’s one-day captain last month after a disappointing World Cup.
England were eliminated from the tournament in the first round and have now gone 14 matches without a win against Australia in one-day cricket.
“We have become a pretty hard side to beat for everyone except Australia,” said Hussain. “That is why the five Tests against South Africa are going to be the most important of my career to date.
“If we can beat them, we can say we have done well against every country apart from Australia, and it will put last winter into perspective and show that Australia are a unique quantity.
“If we lose — and I think the series will go to the wire — we will have to have a hard look at ourselves.
“Not just the 11 members of the team or the players who are centrally contracted players, but the whole of our domestic cricket too, from grassroots to the highest level.”
England’s first Test against Zimbabwe at Lord’s starts on May 22, with the second match at Chester-le-Street beginning on June 5.—Reuters
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