The England cricket captain Andrew Strauss has announced his retirement.
Strauss, who was appointed in 2009, oversaw back-to-back Ashes wins over Australia and took the team to the top of the test rankings.
He will be replaced by one-day skipper Alastair Cook.
The 35-year-old says the drive to it all was his form with the bat and in truth he hasn't batted well for a long period of time now.
His decision was the climax of a difficult few weeks during which England batsman Kevin Pietersen was dropped for the third and final test against South Africa after sending what the player conceded were 'provocative' text messages about his team mates and management to opposition players.
Cook, who is leading England against the South Africans in a one-day series, will take charge of the test side for the tour of India which begins in November.
South-African born Strauss, who also played county cricket for Middlesex, made his England debut against New Zealand in 2004, scoring 112 but says the Ashes win in Australia had been the highlight of his career
