There is a real danger that kids won't engage with cricket when there are so many other opportunities to use their time in other sports, not to mention video-gaming, and generally long-form cricket doesn't turn them on.
— Andrew Strauss
When I arrived at Middlesex I was the only guy who'd been to public school and I got plenty of stick. But it wasn't held against me for long.
That's what sport can do to you: it gives you a lot of heartache and pain, and sometimes the ultimate rewards.
This whole quest to win the 2019 World Cup, that was my job when I was director of England cricket.
In the cricket world, with a lot of little issues that people are getting in a tizz around, I'm just like: Don't worry about it.
Winston Churchill inspired my leadership philosophy. I've read a huge number of his writings, especially his diaries from the Second World War. His thoughts on leadership and duty have helped me as England captain.
I tie my wedding ring around my neck with an old shoelace. It's to remind me of why I play cricket: for my family - my wife Ruth and my boys Sam and Luca.
It's incredible to watch how our cricket clubs depend on volunteers.
If we broaden the audience for cricket, more people will be interested in all forms, then TV rights and sponsors and crowds will follow.
But there are definitely times when I just need to write to clarify my thoughts and put any doubts to bed.
If you think about the practical difficulties of having a relationship with somebody on the other side of the world, it defies all logic.
I played a very background role in terms of trying to get the environment together but Eoin Morgan and Trevor Bayliss have done a great job.
I think you grieve different elements, you grieve your wife who's gone, you grieve the fact she had cancer and you had to watch her die, you grieve the fact the life you built isn't going to be the same as the one going forward. All these different elements hit you at different times.
Cricket is not rocket science. Bowlers often get wickets through perseverance, accuracy and being patient rather than trying to blast opposition teams out.
We all live in this little bubble that we just expect to live forever and I think those of us that have been with people battling cancer, you realise, actually, this surrounds us everywhere we go.
I was forced to learn a lot about psychology as a player, and as a captain to get the best out of others. There's still a lot of scepticism about it in sport and the workplace, but dealing with fluctuations of form, and pressure, and being away from home are more important than your cover-drive.
So I never forget how lucky I am. That's the reason above all else why I'm determined to keep enjoying cricket, whatever the wins or the losses. As long as I do that then the runs will come.
I don't want to overplay the diary's significance, but it's a really helpful batting aid. It's not an obsession because I don't spend more than 10 or 20 minutes writing a day - and not necessarily every day. I might write in it three days in a row and then not the next four. It depends on the situation.
Grief is a bit of a journey, and it is evolving all the time but I am very functional.
If someone has cancer, it's not just them who has cancer - it's everyone around them as well and it's tough.
I'm happy unless I'm not happy. And I think this is the thing with grief, there is no rhyme or reason to it and it's been completely different to how I thought it was going to be.
I have to watch my language. I think a lot about the words I use in both the public environment and the dressing room. The language you use is a direct insight into how you are feeling.
I think it's hard for one coach to do all the formats all the time, and there are a limited number of coaches who have done the hard yards already. You can have head and assistant coaches for each squad.
We know the Victorian way of dealing with death, which was not dealing with it. You'll never get over it but having the support of a counsellor who has been there hundreds of times is so important, to help you develop strategies to cope.
