JOIN USStrauss, retired from limited-overs internationals, just led England to a 1-0 Test series triumph over Sri Lanka but his own batting form has been disappointing and he will return to his county Middlesex for a four-day championship match against Gloucestershire.
But that is the only match that the team, which Strauss has represented all his professional career, has lined up in the next three weeks. This has prompted Strauss to play with Somerset (July 15-17) to be ready for the big four-match series starting on July 21. “Andy Flower (coach) and I looked at the schedule in the three weeks leading up to the first Test against India and looked at what opportunities there might be for me to play cricket,” Strauss said in a statement.
“We saw that Somerset had a tour match against India and we decided to approach them and see if they would be willing for me to play.
“We were very sensitive to Somerset’s feelings on this and if at any stage we felt they weren’t comfortable with the idea, then it would have been a non-starter,” he added.
“But they were very keen on the idea and we’re very grateful for them to give me the opportunity to play some cricket before the first Test. Hopefully, I can spend a bit of time with their young cricketers at the same time,” he said.