Strauss tries hand at blind cricket, lasts two balls

London, May 19 (UNI) Otherwise a stable opener, Andrew Strauss lasted only two deliveries as he tried his hand at blind cricket at The Oval.

Strauss, who took over as president of the Primary Club's new junior section, played with his eyes blindfolded and lasted just two balls despite being bowled an underarm football, filled with ball bearings.

The blindfold meant that he had to rely on his hearing senses to hit a shot and the cricketer's stumps were routed within two deliveries by a visually impaired youngster.

''I'm so used to using my eyes to play the game and to have to use your hearing completely changes the dynamic of it,'' the Test opener told BBC Sport explaining his new experience.

Strauss later admitted that he was lucky to have survived the first ball, which he cut to take a single.

''There was a little bit of beginner's luck there that I hit the ball but it's incredibly difficult,'' he said but added that he enjoyed the experience nonetheless.

''It's a very different game to the one I play but it's just as enjoyable,'' Strauss said.

Strauss' association with the club is not new the opener unknowingly became a member of the charity as a 16-year-old after being out first ball while playing for Oxfordshire under-19 team.

The charity takes any cricketer with a first-ball duck in his career as its member.

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