BIRMINGHAM, July 29: Nasser Hussain was accused of “losing it” and trying to embarrass South Africa captain Graeme Smith during his last match as England Test captain.

Hussain, 35, resigned the Test captaincy after Monday’s drawn series opener against the Proteas here at Edgbaston.

Smith, at 22 South Africa’s youngest-ever captain and 13 years Hussain’s junior, publicy expressed surprise at his opposite number’s move.

But sources close to the tourists’ camp told AFP that the Essex batsman’s decision had not come as a a total surprise.

“Nasser lost it totally” the source said on Monday. “He was swearing at his players in the field.”

The source added that Hussain, whose players often felt the rough edge of his tongue in 45 Tests as England captain, tried to put one over on Smith just before the Test began on Thursday.

“When he went out to toss, Hussain introduced Smith to the match referee as ‘Greg Smith’.

“The (South Africa) team thought it was a deliberate attempt to humiliate him.”

If so it backfired spectacularly with Smith making 277, the highest Test score by a South Africa cricketer, in a first innings total of 594 for five declared — South Africa’s best against England.

He followed that up with 85 in the second innings, breaking a 56-year-old South African record for most runs in a Test match.

In the build-up to this match Hussain had angered the tourists by saying there were “splits in their camp” and that South Africa “were ripe for the taking”.

At a pre-Edgbaston press conference Hussain, who has been selected purely as a batsman for Thursday’s second Test at Lord’s, was also said to have referred to “what’s his name Smith”.

Smith, who succeeded Shaun Pollock after the Proteas’s first round World Cup exit on home soil earlier this year, dismissed talk of a rift between him and his new-ball spearhead as “first Test propaganda”.

He added that England would have problems of their own with the “two captains” issue after Michael Vaughan, now also England’s Test skipper, had made a success of the one-day leadership following Hussain’s retirement from the shorter international game when England also failed to make it past the first hurdle of the World Cup.

So far, at least, Smith appears to have been proved right.

Meanwhile, Hussain has been praised as an inspirational leader by his successor Michael Vaughan.

“Like everyone in the dressing room, I was surprised,” Vaughan told reporters after Hussain’s shock resignation.

“He was a hugely inspirational captain and no one cares more about the England team than him.

“I had not expected the Test captaincy to come my way this summer, but I feel ready for the challenge and will be more than happy to have Nasser in the dressing room with me as one of the senior players.”

Test cricket’s most successful captain Steve Waugh said on Tuesday he had always respected Hussain.

The Australian cricket great, who has won 38 of his 51 Tests as captain, said he enjoyed pitting wits with Hussain on the field.

“I’m obviously not privy to the exact reasons for his decision, but as an opposing captain he was always someone I respected,” Waugh said. “He had a competitive instinct and as a leader he motivated his players well. I always enjoyed the battle of captaining against him.”—AFP/ Reuters