Collingwood vows to keep England one-day place

LONDON: Paul Collingwood has insisted he won’t quit international cricket despite his removal as England’s Twenty20 captain.

The Durham all-rounder retired from Test action after England’s victorious Ashes triumph in Australia but remained available for limited overs duty.

However, the 35-year-old was stunned when, after leading England to the World Twenty20 trophy in the West Indies last year, he was recently ditched as captain of the Twenty20 side and replaced as skipper by Stuart Broad — who has no senior leadership experience.

Collingwood, fit again following knee surgery, told the Cricketer magazine: “I love playing for England. I love the environment. I love what we’ve created.

“It’s just a great place to be and so I really lived the dream these last 10 years. And I want more of it. I want to be involved, I want to be playing.”

He added: “When you get older there’s a lot more pressure. People start looking at your age.

“You have to be fitter than you’ve ever been because you can’t give them an excuse to ignore you. But I feel fit, I feel sharp, all the desire is there, so I just need to score the runs that demand attention. I’ve just had an eight-week break and I haven’t had such a long break since I started playing international cricket.

“It would have been nice if they (the England selectors) had waited and seen what I was like when I came back and then maybe made the decision after the first Twenty20s this summer.

“But, look, when people get sacked you’re always going to have grumbles. I’ve got 100 percent respect for (England coach) Andy Flower and (Test captain) Andrew Strauss. I’m willing to fight for my place in the one-day and Twenty20 teams.”