Former cricketer joins festival to coach teen talent

Former England cricket captain Andrew Strauss said coaching young talent is "what it's all about"

A former England cricket captain has been helping coach the next generation at an international cricket festival.

Ashes winner Sir Andrew Strauss has been at Millfield School in Somerset, supporting teenagers at the Apex Cricket Tournament - an event which sees some of the world's most talented young people compete.

Sir Andrew said it was a great opportunity to "dust off the tracksuit" and "reinvigorate" himself with "what it's all about."

"[The event] has been a great melting pot of people coming together and united by their love of cricket," he said.

"It's been the perfect conditions for cricket and the kids have been out there having a fantastic time.

"There are teams here from all different backgrounds. People who might not normally meet each other off the pitch.

"The amount of enthusiasm has been great and there's been some high quality coaching and personal development, so the kids go away with hopefully one or two nuggets they can take with them in their career."

Sir Andrew said the teenagers had "played some good cricket on the pitch"

The Apex Cricket Tournament, which ran from 29 June to 2 July, is a prestigious festival for the very best Under 15s cricketers from around the world.

"It's really nice for me to dust off the tracksuit and get back out there speaking to kids and reinvigorate myself with what it's all about.

"This is what it's about - it's about putting the next generation through and providing the opportunities for everybody no matter where they're coming from," Sir Andrew added.