Andrew Strauss facts for kids

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Sir
Andrew Strauss

Strauss being interviewed at the end of the Lord's Test match v Pakistan in August 2010

Personal information

Full name

Andrew John Strauss

Born

2 March 1977 (age 48)
Johannesburg, Transvaal Province, South Africa

Height

5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)

Batting

Left-handed

Bowling

Left-arm medium

Role

Opening batsman

International information

National side

England (2003–2012)

Test debut (cap 624)

20 May 2004 v New Zealand

Last Test

16 August 2012 v South Africa

ODI debut (cap 180)

18 November 2003 v Sri Lanka

Last ODI

26 March 2011 v Sri Lanka

ODI shirt no.

T20I debut (cap 9)

12 June 2005 v Australia

Last T20I

15 March 2009 v West Indies

Domestic team information

Years

Team

1998–2012

Middlesex

2011

→ Somerset (on loan)

2002

Marylebone Cricket Club

2007/08

Northern Districts

Career statistics

Competition	Test	ODI	FC	LA
Matches	100	127	241	254
Runs scored	7,037	4,205	17,046	7,631
Batting average	40.91	35.63	42.72	32.75
100s/50s	21/27	6/27	46/74	10/49
Top score	177	158	241*	163
Catches/stumpings	121/–	57/–	228/–	90/–

Source: ESPNcricinfo, 30 October 2017

Sir Andrew John Strauss (born March 2, 1977) is a famous English cricket player and administrator. He used to be in charge of cricket for England (at the ECB). He played for Middlesex and was captain of the England national team in all types of cricket. Andrew Strauss was a left-handed opening batsman. He was known for hitting the ball well, especially with 'cut' and 'pull' shots. He was also a great fielder, catching many balls.

Strauss played his first big cricket match in 1998. He made his debut in a One Day International (ODI) game in Sri Lanka in 2003. Andrew Strauss became famous quickly when he played his first Test match in 2004. He scored 112 and 83 runs in that game, helping England win. He was even named 'man of the match'. He was only the fourth player to score a century (100 runs) at Lord's in his first Test match.

After being a stand-in captain in 2006, Strauss became the permanent captain of England in 2009. He led the team to a big 2–1 victory in the 2009 Ashes series. He scored more runs than anyone else in that series. Strauss holds a record for the most catches by an England fielder. He stopped playing all professional cricket on August 29, 2012, after his 100th Test match. He was the second most successful England captain in terms of wins. In 2015, he became the ECB's Director of Cricket. For his great work in English cricket, Andrew Strauss was made a Knight Bachelor in 2019.

Early Life and School
Personal Life
Playing for Clubs
Playing for England
Life After Playing
Achievements
- Test Cricket Records
- One Day International Cricket Records
Images for kids
See Also

Early Life and School

Andrew Strauss moved to the UK when he was six years old. He went to Caldicott School, a prep school for boys, and then to Radley College, a public boarding school in Oxfordshire.

He studied economics at the University of Durham. While there, he played cricket for the university team and for Hatfield College. He also played rugby for the university. His cricket coach, Graeme Fowler, convinced him to focus only on cricket. Strauss earned a special award called a 'full Palatinate' for his cricket achievements. He finished university in 1998.

Personal Life

Early in his career, Andrew Strauss spent some years in Australia. There, he met his future wife, Ruth McDonald. They got married in October 2003. They lived in Marlow and had two sons, Sam and Luca. Sadly, Ruth passed away on December 29, 2018, after battling a rare type of lung cancer.

After Ruth's death, Andrew connected with former Australian cricketer Glenn McGrath. Glenn's wife had also died from cancer, and he started the McGrath Foundation to fight breast cancer. Andrew Strauss then helped create the Ruth Strauss Foundation. This foundation works to help families facing difficult times with cancer.

Strauss is also the President of the Primary Club Juniors, a charity that supports blind cricket. He even played a blind cricket game himself to help the cause. He has many nicknames, like Straussy, Levi, Johann, and The General.

In 2011, he was given an award called OBE. His university, Durham, also gave him an honorary degree. In 2019, he was made a Knight Bachelor, which means he is now called "Sir Andrew Strauss". He has written several books about his cricket career and his life.

Playing for Clubs

Andrew Strauss started playing for the Middlesex first team in 1998. He scored 83 runs in his very first match. He didn't score his first century until two years later. But after that, he became a very good player. In 2001, 2002, and 2003, he scored many runs each season.

He became the captain of Middlesex in 2002 and stayed captain until 2004. In 2011, he scored his highest ever runs in a first-class match, making 241 not out against Leicestershire.

Playing for England

Starting His International Career (2003–04)

Andrew Strauss first joined the England team for a tour in Asia in 2003. He made his One Day International (ODI) debut in Sri Lanka. He then got a chance to play in the Test team during a tour of the West Indies.

His big break came in 2004 when he made his Test debut at Lord's against New Zealand. He scored 112 runs in the first innings and 83 in the second. This was amazing for a first game! He was named 'Man of the Match'. This great start meant he became a regular opening batsman for England.

Later in 2004, he scored his first ODI century, making exactly 100 runs against the West Indies at Lord's. He continued his good form, scoring another century against the West Indies in a Test match at Lord's.

Road to The Ashes (2004–05)

England toured South Africa in late 2004. Strauss, who was born in South Africa, had a fantastic tour. He scored 126 runs in his first Test match there. He almost scored two centuries in that game, making 94 not out in the second innings. He became only the seventh player to score a century in both his home and away debuts.

He scored two more centuries in that series, making 136 and 147. He was the top run-scorer in the series, with 656 runs, and was named 'Man of the Series'.

Winning The Ashes (2005)

The 2005 Ashes series against Australia was a huge event. England hadn't won the Ashes in a long time. Strauss didn't start well in the first Test, but he improved. In the second Test, he scored 49 runs, helping England win by just two runs in a very exciting match.

In the third Test, he scored 106 runs. In the fourth Test, he made a great catch to dismiss Australian star Adam Gilchrist. England won that match, taking the series lead. In the final Test, Strauss scored another century, 129 runs, which was his second century of the series. England won the series 2–1, bringing the Ashes trophy home for the first time in 18 years! Strauss was the only player to score two centuries in the series.

Captaincy and Later Career

After the Ashes win, Strauss continued to play for England. He sometimes filled in as captain when the main captain was injured. In 2009, he was officially made the permanent captain of the England Test team.

He led England to another Ashes victory in 2009, winning 2–1 at home. He was the top run-scorer in that series, making 474 runs. He was even named in the World Test XI (a team of the best Test players) by the ICC in 2009.

In the 2010–11 Ashes series in Australia, Strauss aimed to become one of the few England captains to win the Ashes both home and away. England had an amazing series. Strauss scored a century in the first Test. England won the second, fourth, and fifth Tests by a huge margin, often by an innings. They won the series 3–1, which was a fantastic achievement.

World Cup and Retirement

Strauss captained England in the 2011 Cricket World Cup. He scored 88 runs in the first match and an impressive 158 runs against India, which ended in a thrilling tie. However, England had some surprising losses and were knocked out in the quarter-finals. After the World Cup, Strauss decided to step down as the ODI captain and retired from One Day International cricket.

Andrew Strauss announced his full retirement from all cricket on August 29, 2012. This was after he played his 100th Test match. His teammates gave him 100 bottles of wine as a thank you gift! Alastair Cook, who was his vice-captain and opening partner, took over as the new captain.

Life After Playing

In 2015, Andrew Strauss became the Director of England cricket for the ECB. In this important role, he helped make big decisions about the England team, including choosing new coaches. He also encouraged the team to focus more on shorter forms of cricket.

He stepped down from this role in October 2018 to spend more time with his wife, Ruth, who was battling cancer.

Achievements

Test Cricket Records

Andrew Strauss played 100 Test matches for England. He scored 7,037 runs, including 21 centuries and 27 half-centuries. His highest score was 177 runs. He also took 121 catches.

Opponent	Matches	Innings	Not out	Runs	Balls	High score	100	50	Average	Strike rate
Australia	20	36	0	1,421	2,809	161	4	7	39.47	50.58
Bangladesh	4	5	0	263	385	83	0	3	52.60	68.31
India	12	22	1	929	2,180	128	3	3	44.23	42.61
New Zealand	9	16	0	813	1,728	177	3	4	50.81	47.04
Pakistan	13	24	1	793	1,548	128	2	3	34.47	51.22
South Africa	16	30	1	1,113	2,361	147	3	3	38.37	47.14
Sri Lanka	8	13	0	297	644	55	0	2	22.84	46.11
West Indies	18	32	3	1,408	2,730	169	6	2	48.55	51.57
TOTAL	100	178	6	7,037	14,385	177	21	27	40.91	48.91

One Day International Cricket Records

Andrew Strauss played 127 One Day International matches. He scored 4,205 runs, with 6 centuries and 27 half-centuries. His top score was 158 runs. He also took 57 catches.

Opponent	Matches	Innings	Not out	Runs	Balls	High score	100	50	Average	Strike rate	4s	6s
Australia	36	36	1	979	1,282	87	0	8	27.97	76.36	104	4
Bangladesh	8	8	1	610	590	154	2	3	87.14	103.38	67	9
India	11	11	2	387	473	158	1	2	43.00	81.81	48	1
Ireland	2	2	0	38	50	34	0	0	19.00	76.00	3	1
Netherlands	1	1	0	88	83	88	0	1	88.00	106.02	9	0
New Zealand	7	7	0	183	291	61	0	2	26.14	62.88	16	1
Pakistan	15	15	0	625	725	126	1	5	41.66	86.20	69	4
Scotland	1	1	0	61	43	61	0	1	61.00	141.86	12	0
South Africa	13	13	1	247	380	46	0	0	20.58	65.00	30	1
Sri Lanka	9	9	0	157	234	45	0	0	17.44	67.09	13	0
West Indies	19	18	2	725	894	105	2	5	45.31	81.09	75	4
Zimbabwe	5	5	1	105	150	33	0	0	26.25	70.00	8	0
TOTAL	127	126	8	4,205	5,195	158	6	27	35.63	80.94	454	25

Images for kids

Strauss was added to the Lord's honours board for scoring a century on his Test debut
Strauss batting against Bangladesh at Lord's
Strauss is caught by Michael Clarke chasing 129 to win the fourth Test
England celebrate in Trafalgar Square after winning the Ashes
An innings-by-innings breakdown of Strauss' Test match batting career, showing runs scored (blue and orange bars) and career batting average (red line).
A match-by-match breakdown of Strauss' One Day International batting career, showing runs scored (blue and orange bars) and career batting average (red line).