MICHAEL Vaughan joked that being bowled out by his three-year-old son was enough to tell him it was the right time to retire from professional cricket.
The former England captain, 34, closed the curtain on a glittering career that stretches back almost 17 years at a packed press conference at Edgbaston yesterday. Vaughan, England's most successful post-war Test captain, pointed to his stewardship of
the 2005 Ashes triumph over Australia as the pinnacle of his time in the sport.
But having been overlooked for the training squad for the 2009 series, coupled with his recent omission from Yorkshire's squad for a Twenty20 encounter, he feels the time is right to walk away.
"My decision came two weeks ago at Worcester. I just started to realise that there are younger players around the Yorkshire team, first and foremost, and certainly around the England team that need to be given the chance to move the game forward.
"I've given it my best shot – seven or eight months ago I was thinking that I should step down before December, but I wanted to give it one last hard effort to try to get into the Ashes squad.
"I haven't been playing well enough, in some instances my body hasn't been reacting the way I would like it to. And I guess two weeks ago when in the garden with my little lad Archie, he bowled a ball, it hit a weed and it knocked my off stump out of the ground. I think that was the time, if a three-year-old is bowling me out, then it's time to move over."
He continued: "I know it's the right decision. I always say in the dressing-room that your senior players have to be the most enthusiastic. I just had a feeling in the Yorkshire dressing room that I wasn't passing on that enthusiasm. I'd like to be remembered as someone who gave my all. I don't think I've left anything out there. I have no regrets."
Vaughan, who ended his Test career with average of 41.44, played down rumours he is ready to move straight into the media and dismissed an immediate return in a coaching or management role for England.
Vaughan did admit to spending an hour on the phone with Andrew Strauss yesterday morning discussing his decision. And the current England captain was quick to pay a glowing tribute to his former leader.
"It's hard to speak highly enough about what he achieved as England captain. He really took England to a new level," said Strauss. "He showed a huge amount of loyalty to me personally so I feel a huge amount of loyalty to him as a captain and as a friend. But his achievements can't be overestimated, taking the England team forward, the way he captained, the relaxed manner in which he was to get us playing, as well as the very positive outlook on how to play cricket. He's without doubt the best captain I've played under. It's a sad day that he's not going to be playing any more."
Graham Thorpe, who retired after missing out on a place in the 2005 Ashes side, said: "I think he has done the right thing. He'll know it's the right time mentally and physically. He wouldn't have come to the decision just like that. Throughout the summer he has tried to get his form back but knows the state his knee and body are in.
"The timing of it is right. I remember from personal experience what it was like at the end of your career. You're a player who has been left out, but you have to make a decision because you're still a story for the press. The fact he's not involved takes that out of the equation which is not a bad thing because it allows the players who are in there to go out there and do their stuff."
Former England skipper Alec Stewart felt Vaughan never had a serious chance of facing Australia this time around.
He said: "Michael was a fantastic England captain and a brilliant player who deserves all the plaudits he gets. But when it comes to whether he was a serious candidate for a recall I think people were a little bit living on memories. The dressing-room would have liked him in the side because he's a big-match player. The bigger the stage the better he performed.
"But once left out, to get back in you have to perform at the level down and he didn't do that for Yorkshire. It was an easy decision for England and they made the right call. It would have been hard for him to keep representing Yorkshire when on the dressing-room TV would be his former team-mates playing against Australia."
Australia captain Ricky Ponting, who was rival captain to Vaughan during the 2005 Ashes series, said: "Michael was an exceptionally skilled and talented player whose record would stack up against most top order batsmen who have played international cricket."
Former England and Yorkshire team-mate Matthew Hoggard added: "It's a big blow for Yorkshire cricket and for England cricket. It's a very personal decision. He knew it was the right time. I don't think there's anything we could have said to change his mind."
The full article contains 905 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
