Strauss staying out of Twenty20 format

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The England captain quit the shortest form of the game because he believed it would benefit him in the Test and one-day arena, and he is certain that has so far been the case for himself and his team.

"Never say never. But at this stage, I've got no plans to play Twenty20 cricket," he clarified.

"My reasons for not playing Twenty20 cricket are firstly that there are some limitations in my game in that format and secondly I believe strongly that for me to continue playing well in the 50-over format and Test cricket something's got to give.

"You've got to remain reasonably fresh as an international captain, to be able to motivate people.

"For me, it just makes sense that I step aside from the Twenty20 and give myself the time to prepare properly for 50-over and Test cricket."

There were reports that Strauss was almost pressed into action when injury curtailed England's other Twenty20 options at the start of their ongoing South Africa tour.

Strauss does not deny them but appears relieved he was able to stay on the sidelines after all.

"There were some considerations given. But ultimately, me playing in a one-off capacity is not going to help the team long term," he explains.

"I'm not going to be there in the West Indies (at next spring's World Twenty20) - so if there are injuries there, or 'Colly' (captain Paul Collingwood) gets injured, someone needs to step up and take over."