After making a pair at Lord's and presiding over a 12-Test winless captaincy run, Ian Botham resigned the England captaincy minutes before the selectors were going to sack him.
Botham was appointed captain in 1980 in succession to Mike Brearley; the appointment was always considered a long-shot bet.
England had not won under Botham; the West Indies had thrashed them home and away.
Botham had been appointed England captain in 1980 against the touring West Indies, the first England captain since Tony Greig four years earlier. The job did not suit him: in 12 Tests as captain he won none, lost four and drew eight, with his own batting and bowling figures collapsing. The 1981 series began with a draw at Trent Bridge and a defeat at Lord's, where Botham bagged a pair — bowled by Lillee and caught off Bright. As he walked off, the silence in the Long Room was total. He went straight to the chairman of selectors, Alec Bedser, and resigned before being told. Mike Brearley was recalled for the third Test at Headingley, with the brief 'find a way to win one'. The captaincy switch unleashed Botham as a player and produced what became known as 'Botham's Ashes'.
Pair at Lord's
Long Room silence as Botham walked off
Resignation tendered to Alec Bedser
Brearley recalled aged 39
Botham named vice-captain
1980
Botham appointed captain
12 Tests
0 wins, 4 losses, 8 draws
Lord's 1981
Pair as captain
Post-match
Resignation; Brearley recalled
“I knew it was over when I walked back through the Long Room.”
“We needed Ian to bowl and bat. The captaincy was getting in the way.”
The very next Test was Headingley; Botham scored 50 and 149* and took 6/95.
A graceful, if forced, exit that turned out to be the best thing for both player and team.
The episode remains a textbook case in sports management of when to remove a star player from leadership for the good of both player and team.
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