England captain Andrew Strauss has dismissed criticism over the number of players not born in this country among the squad heading for South Africa.
Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott, Strauss himself and Matt Prior were all born in South Africa, but the current England skipper is unconcerned by that fact.
He said: "In terms of trying to win the Test series it won't be a big issue, but it might bubble away in the background.
"All I can say is the selectors sit down and pick the best 15 England qualified players. The fact some of them have been born out of these shores is of no consequence.
"In order to make it to Test level you must show a lot of determination, hunger and desire.
"The fact Kevin and Jonathan have come over later in their lives is of no consequence.
"They've obviously had the determination, hunger and desire - possibly more than some people in county cricket. They deserve to be playing for England because of that.
"It's easy to start looking where you are born, but it's of no real consequence. As captain I'm very happy that the 15 players I've got are 100 per cent committed to performing for England and representing their country.
"That's the way it should be. Looking into their backgrounds is of no consequence to us and is not something we'll focus on."
Subscribe in a reader
No comments:
Post a Comment