Eversley CC have seen quite a few cricketers since their foundation in 1787 – some of Hampshire’s greatest names, such as Shane Warne and Mark Nicholas, have played there in benefit games – and later this season the club are likely to acquire a new 42-year-old playing member.

Too many potential middle-aged members begin their application to a cricket club with the dreaded words “I haven’t played since school...” In this case, however, the CV is quite impressive: 21 Test centuries, captaining England to Ashes victories at home and abroad, as only Sir Leonard Hutton has properly done, and even leading England to No 1 in the Test rankings for the only time since they began in 2003.

Last summer, Andrew Strauss did not pick up a bat. His wife, Ruth, had been diagnosed with the inoperable form of lung cancer that attacks non-smokers, and given a year to live. This summer, he is thinking of a couple of games for Eversley because his elder son, Sam, has already played for their third team and is progressing as a pace-bowling all-rounder.

Making the most of it: this is what Strauss does. When he took over as England’s captain in January 2009, it was chaos on and off the field, with no head coach, and in his first Test his side were dismissed by West Indies for 51 – yet, 2½ years later, they had won the Ashes of 2009 and 2010-11, drawn in South Africa and beaten India 4-0 at home to top the rankings.