The beleaguered skipper is aware, though, that given the disaster of the recent Zimbabwe tour, he may not have a choice in the matter if the upcoming series against New Zealand ends on a similar note.

``I don't see myself doing the job for much longer,'' Atherton told The Times, London, in an interview. ``If the tour against New Zealand goes well, then I would like to do the job in the summer, against Australia. If it does not go well then I won't be doing it any longer. That much is obvious.''

And what if England does well against both New Zealand and Australia? ``Who can say?'' was Atherton's response to that conundrum.

Ahterton in his interview argued that he had pretty much come full circle. ``Graham Gooch did the job for four years, from 1989 to 1993. I've done the job since then. A four-year period constitutes a round circle of events, and encapsulates most series and most challenges a captain can expect, and by the end of next summer I would have done that. If there is such a thing as a na- tural period of office then that is it.''

The pressure on Atherton to quit has mounted since the England team drew two Tests against Zimbabwe and then lost the one-day series 3-0.

Despite this humiliating result, though, Atherton maintains that he has no regrets. ``I have enjoyed being captain on this trip. My form has been poor but that has not harmed my overall enjoyment,'' he said.

When faced with the old conundrum of whether captaincy had adversely impacted on his batting - in his last 14 Test innings, Atherton has totalled a mere 203 - the England skipper refuted it. ``It is quite misleading to suggest the captaincy has burdened my batting because the last three years have been the best of my test career,'' Atherton said.

But then, apparently even the best of things has to end - and for Atherton, the end of the road is later this year, after one final essay against traditional rivals Australia. If, that his, the side he leads escapes unscathed against the Kiwis in the series now underway.