The captain is the focal point of pressure; he always feels the heat

It is one of cricket’s ironies that players welcome captaincy despite knowing that the chances of escaping its psychological and physical damage are low. Great captains are often those who hide their trauma well. Even those who enjoy the job and have a profound effect on the game reach a point when the ‘honour’ doesn’t matter any more.England captain Ben Stokes torching “the church that he built,” in the memorable words of cricket writer Vithushan Ehantharajah, was a reminder of what captaincy can do to players, even the best ones.

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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Hindu.