Luke Wright has told how being captain of Sussex was waking him up at night.

Now he is ready to bat with freedom – and leave the game behind after close of play.

Wright was yesterday awaiting the arrival of his third child content in the after-glow of an innings win over Worcestershire, in which he made 87.

It was his first game since 2015 playing without the responsibility of captaincy.

He has told how the honour was weighing heavy and why he went out with no pressure when he batted on Friday afternoon and Saturday.

Wright said: “I was finding it hard work to get away from the game and that is something I have always been good at, whether it has been with England or with Sussex.

“I have always managed to check in and check out and leave the game behind and come back in next day.

“You often have to do that when you are getting caught at cover and getting out in the horrible ways I do, the way I bat.

“I wasn’t sleeping well. I was waking up in the middle of the night thinking about the team and what I could do more.

“I just found it hard to let go. Sometimes you can almost care too much.

“It was affecting me a little bit on the pitch and I was finding it hard off the pitch.

“I thought it was only fair for Sussex as well as myself to let it go.”

Wright, who signed for Sussex after their 2003 Championship triumph, is keen to help the county back to what he refers to as the glory days.

Although on-field matters played just a part in his decision, he gave some insight as to how the captaincy affected him as a batsman.

He said: “From a selfish point of view, I have been walking out to bat thinking about the team first and foremost.

“It is not until I’ve got out into the middle that I have thought about actually batting myself.

“That has probably shown with getting into the 30s and getting out. This time I felt as free as a bird again.

The Argus:

Luke Wright enjoys a joke during the win over Worcesterhire

“I felt I was batting okay before but I hadn’t got the scores. I got an 80 at the end of the one-dayers but the other day I felt quite clear and quite content.

“I thought that even if I got caught at cover again, that’s okay. I’m not letting the whole team down.”

Wright was talking in the aftermath of the Worcestershire game and looked, to borrow the expression used by stand-in skipper Chris Nash last week, happy as Larry.

He said: “I spoke to my wife and my family about what to do and it became quite an easy decision.

“The moment I stepped down, I felt relieved rather than sad and I think that is a sign you have done the right thing.

“There was never a doubt about my commitment to the club. I just didn’t feel I could give the team exactly what they needed.”

So who takes the job on once the Leicestershire game is out of the way?

Wright can see the case for Nash or for the man he named as his vice-captain, the currently sidelined Ben Brown. But you know what? He doesn’t need to worry about such decisions anymore!

He said: “Nashy has put his hand up for these next few games and obviously there’s Browny. I took Browny on as vice-captain for a reason.

“He has got a good cricket brain and he cares about the club.

“We don’t have lots of senior guys and Nashy has done it a few times.

“But that’s one of the decisions I’ve given up.

“All I have to worry about now is stopping the ball and hitting the ball.

“For a simple mind like myself, it’s quite nice now."