Motivation remains for Flower

Cricket365
December 31, 2013

Head coach Andy Flower has negated suggestion of impending resignation, amid England's daunting battle to prevent a five-nil Ashes series whitewash.

Largely dominant against the Australians in the United Kingdom earlier this year, the English have since slipped to a hefty four-nil series defeat in the wake of large defeats in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Melbourne.

"I'd like to carry on," said Flower. "It would be a really exciting challenge for me. I would have the appetite to do that. I still have confidence in my ability to lead this group in the right direction.

"We ask our players to constantly look to improve and evolve and certainly I ask our coaching team to do so and when asking those questions of others I should absolutely be doing that myself."

The visitors' campaign has been marred by the departure of batsman Jonathan Trott, who returned home due to a stress-related illness after the series opener, and spinner Graeme Swann, who retired from Test and first-class cricket with immediate effect earlier this month.

"This group of players have had some really good times. But we have seen Trott disappear at the start of the tour and we have seen Swann disappear after three Tests. Those have been two absolute stalwarts for us," added Flower.

"Trott has been as solid as anyone can be at number three and Swann has provided an outstanding career over six years. Hopefully Trott comes back at some stage, but with the passing of those two stalwarts and some of the results we have got on this tour I think it is fair to say that post-Sydney the England management should view this as starting afresh."