Cape Town (S. Africa), Dec 13(ANI): England skipper Andrew Strauss has admitted that he had seriously thought about quitting cricket after being dropped from the team's tour of Sri Lanka at the start of last year.
The phase came after first three years of his Test career, where he was unstoppable. In 2007, Strauss had gone 13 Tests without a century and endured a run of poor form that lasted eight months, following which he was axed from the squad.
"I had been out of form for a long time and kept thinking 'What am I doing this for?' I was away from my family and nothing was happening. I was banging my head against a wall," The News of the World quoted Strauss, as saying.
"I really began questioning my motivation and thinking 'Should I bother to try to get back into the England team?' because I wasn't sure I actually missed playing for England. I was preparing myself to never play for England again. I thought this could be it," he added.
Strauss further said that it was the power of thinking positively, which at the end helped him regain his confidence and play for England again.
"The catalyst for everything was actually the belief that it wasn't going to happen, I had almost given up. I told myself to give myself a break and enjoy what I expected to be my last innings for England," Strauss said.
"I let go of all the pressure and it then became so much clearer, the power of thinking positively about yourself, and from that moment everything began to change for me," he added.
Only 17 months after suffering the overwhelming loneliness and self-doubt, Strauss found himself on a stage at The Oval lifting the Ashes, as captain, leading scorer and the man of the series, bathed in sunshine and surrounded by his admiring team-mates. (ANI)
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