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LONDON. – Former Zimbabwe captain Andy Flower will temporarily replace Andrew Strauss who is stepping back from his role as England’s director of cricket while his wife is treated for cancer.

His wife, Ruth, was diagnosed in December and is about to enter a new period of treatment.

The former England captain, 41, said he will initially be out of the role for three months and former England coach Flower will temporarily take over.

“He will keep a very steady hand on the tiller while I am away,” Strauss said.

Strauss returned home early from the Ashes in December to be with his family when his wife was diagnosed with the disease.

The former England captain was appointed to the role in May 2015, less than three years after retiring.

“I need to step back and look after my wife and the family for a period of time,” Strauss said.

Flower was England technical director between 2009 and 2014 and currently coaches England Lions.

England play Pakistan and India in Test and limited-overs series this summer and also play a five-match one-day international series and one-off Twenty20 against Australia.

“We have a number of things we are focusing on over the next 12 months and have been working on for a number of months, none of those things change with me being away,” Strauss said.

“All that happens is responsibility gets handed to various people in the England cricket department and Andy Flower is the go-to guy on a day-to-day basis. The situation is for me to be out while the treatment continues, which will initially be a three-month period – that is the way we are approaching it.

“These things can run in a number of different ways and we need to be flexible.” – BBC Sport.