Alec Stewart was at The Oval on Thursday to talk about his new role as president of the Cricketers’ Trust, yet conversation inevitably drifted towards England’s latest post-Ashes inquest.
The 62-year-old Surrey director of cricket keeps being linked with jobs that, for the moment at least, do not exist. Rob Key’s position as managing director of men’s cricket is under review following a 4-1 defeat in Australia; Luke Wright’s future as national selector is also being discussed. Stewart’s name surfaces each time but he is not biting.
“You’re looking for a headline, aren’t you? There’s no jobs available so it is a question that’s not going to get answered,” he said. “I’ve come back [to Surrey] full-time, having stood down for my own reasons and my wife’s health last year. I’ve come back into this and got my feet under the desk again here.
“It’s a question I can’t answer because there isn’t a job to say yes or no to, but all I want is Surrey to be the best and England to be the best. Simple.”
ECB chief executive Richard Gould has promised a “thorough review” of the “deeply disappointing” Ashes performance, a process that will not finish until after the current T20 World Cup. Until the report lands, nobody – Stewart included – knows whether any roles will even be advertised.
So, back to why Stewart was really in the room. The Cricketers’ Trust, the charitable arm of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, has asked him to follow David Graveney as president, and he said it was “an easy decision” when trustee Ian Thomas made the call.
The Trust’s first impact report shows more than £1 million has been spent in five years on medical, financial and emotional support for players and families across England and Wales. Stewart spoke warmly about that work.
“What the Trust did – and is doing – for the Thorpe family is outstanding, and Syd Lawrence’s family will say similar,” he noted, referring to Graham Thorpe, who died in 2024 after battles with depression and anxiety, and to David ‘Syd’ Lawrence, who has Motor Neurone Disease. “The support throughout and after is so crucial – and the after-support is at times even more important. Amanda [Thorpe] and the girls – even Henry and Amelia from his first marriage – are receiving the support when they need it.
“That is so important, otherwise you end up being left on your own, and that’s where the Trust have been brilliant. The county [Surrey] have done what they can do, ECB did what they could do, but I know that the Trust have gone above and beyond.
“[They] don’t care whether Thorpey was a brilliant player or had only played one first-class game.”
Stewart now wants to raise awareness without turning the Trust into a publicity machine. “People inside the game know the work,” he said. “The challenge is getting the message to supporters who sit in the stands every week but may not realise some ex-pros are struggling.”
On Surrey matters, he reported few injury worries ahead of a pre-season trip to the Caribbean. Retaining the Championship title is firmly on his radar. “Players who play for England want to play for Surrey, too. That’s the sweet spot,” he observed, hinting that the Curran brothers and Ollie Pope should feature regularly this summer.
England? For the time being, someone else’s brief. Stewart knows speculation will carry on, but until that review concludes, he is sticking to club business. A familiar dead-bat approach, and, for now, entirely sensible.
