England captain Andrew Strauss promised on Wednesday a fresh start after the traumas of the Australian campaign in the knowledge that his second stint as leader could last only one match.
Strauss will deputise for Michael Vaughan in the first test against West Indies starting at Lord's on Thursday knowing that Vaughan will return for the remainder of the four-match series when his broken finger heals. "It's important for me to set the right sort of example from the off," Strauss told a news conference.
"It's a very important summer for English cricket and I've been chatting with Vaughanie quite a lot about setting the tone for the summer. This first test is my responsibility. "I'm very comfortable. Firstly the likelihood is he will be ready for the second test and he is the captain for the series.
"Also he is a very experienced captain and he's got the ability to see things that other people might not. I'm certainly not going to be stubborn enough to say I'm not going to listen." Vaughan has not played test cricket for 18 months through injury, although he led England at the World Cup this year after the side captained by Andrew Flintoff lost the Ashes 5-0 to Australia.
Strauss captained England to a 3-0 home series win over Pakistan last year when both Vaughan and Flintoff were injured, scoring two centuries at opener. Flintoff's chances of leading England in the near future disappeared when he was involved in a drunken escapade at the World Cup in the Caribbean.
England will decide on Thursday morning whether to risk Flintoff's vulnerable left ankle, which troubled him again at the weekend. Pace bowler James Anderson has been drafted into the side as cover.