Debut and centuries on maiden tour

Trescothick participated in two England A tours during the winter of 1999, but his full One Day International debut came against Zimbabwe at The Oval on 9 July 2000, when he scored 79.^[20][21] He continued his good form in the tournament with a Man of the Match–winning 87 not out against the West Indies at Chester-le-street,^[22] amassing 288 runs at an average of 48.00 and taking two wickets against Zimbabwe at Old Trafford.^[23]

As a result of his good form in the NatWest series, Trescothick was given his Test match debut later that summer in the third Test against the West Indies at Old Trafford.^[24] He displayed a calm temperament when England lost early wickets, scoring 66 and forming a partnership of 179 with Alec Stewart.^[25] Journalist Thrasy Petropoulos observed that there was "poise and durability...just as there had been enterprise and verve to his impressive start in the one-day arena".^[26] He ended the Test series with an average of 47.50.^[27]

England began the 2000–2001 winter tour with the 2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy at Nairobi Gymkhana Club. Trescothick did not score highly in the tournament, and England were knocked out at the quarter-final stage against South Africa.^[28] Trescothick was named the Professional Cricketers' Association Player of the Year for his performances for Somerset throughout 2000.^[29]

Trescothick's maiden international century came against the Sindh Governor's XI in October 2000, during the first warm-up match to the Pakistan series.^[30] Trescothick reached his highest score (71) of the three Test matches in the opening innings of the first Test. He took his sole Test wicket in the third Test, when Ashley Giles caught the Pakistan opener Imran Nazir.^[31]

Trescothick began the England in Sri Lanka tour with a century against a Sri Lanka 'Colts XI'. He was the top scorer in both innings of the first Test with 122 and 57, although this was overshadowed by Marvan Atapattu's 201 not out in Sri Lanka's innings.^[32] Trescothick averaged 41.33 in the Test series, but only 16.00 in the three subsequent ODIs.^[33][34]

England played two Test matches against Pakistan in June 2001. Although Trescothick scored 117 in the second Test, it was not enough for England to win the match.^[35] His ODI form improved at the start of the 2001 NatWest Series against Australia and Pakistan, with scores of 69 and 137 respectively.^[36] However, his series ended with two consecutive ducks, and England lost all their matches in the tournament.^[37][38]

England's leading batsman, 2001–02

Although Trescothick was England's second-highest run scorer in the 2001 Ashes series,^[14] he displayed a tendency to give his wicket away when "well set".^[18] England lost the series 4–1, with the majority of the England batsmen's contributions being overshadowed by Mark Butcher's 173 not out to win the fourth Test. Trescothick's apparent inability to make major scores was again apparent in the 2001–02 One Day International series in Zimbabwe, where he only passed 50 on one occasion despite scoring consistently.^[39] He also captained the team for the first time in this series, deputising for the injured Nasser Hussain.^[14]

Trescothick really came into his own on the winter tour of India in 2001. The three-Test series saw him averaging 48.00, with a highest score of 99.^[40] He was England's best batsman in the ODI series, averaging 53.00 with a strike rate of over 100. He scored a century in the first ODI, although England lost by 22 runs.^[41] He established a reputation for keeping his composure while the rest of the team were failing; at this point, none of Trescothick's four international centuries had resulted in an England win.^[18] He was also man-of-the-match in the final ODI, setting up an England victory, with 95 runs from 80 balls.^[42] This tour established Trescothick's reputation as one of England's best batsmen against spin bowling: according to David Gower, he was "judging line and length very well".^[17] Indian Cricket named him one of their five Cricketers of the Year for 2002.^[29] The following tour of New Zealand was less successful for Trescothick, only once reaching double figures in a poor ODI series,^[43] coupled with an average Test match performance.^[44]

Trescothick had been playing well in 2002, scoring 161 in the Sri Lankan series and being awarded the Player of the Series in the tri-nation NatWest Series (including a century in the final),^[14][45] until his season was cut short when he suffered a fractured thumb whilst fielding.^[46] He returned for the fourth Test against India, scoring two half-centuries.^[47] Trescothick had mixed fortunes in the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy; he followed his century in the NatWest final with a man-of-the-match winning 119 against Zimbabwe,^[48] but failed to score as England lost to India and exited the tournament.^[49]

In October, Trescothick was one of 11 players awarded "central contracts" by the ECB,^[50] which compensate a player's county for their lack of domestic appearances.

Trescothick was overshadowed by Michael Vaughan during the 2002–03 Ashes series, averaging only 26.10 with a top score of 72 in comparison to Vaughan's average of 63.30 and three centuries. Trescothick averaged 31.60 across 10 matches in the VB Series,^[51] but England were outplayed by Australia throughout the tour. Trescothick failed to excel in the 2003 World Cup as England failed to qualify for the knock-out stages.^[52] In his five matches, Trescothick's top score was 58 against Namibia, with a tournament average of 23.20.^[53]

Continued success in 2003 and 2004

Trescothick played well against a weak Zimbabwe team in the two-Test series in May–June 2003, and scored an unbeaten century in the three ODIs against Pakistan averaging over 100.^[54] His form continued in the 2003 NatWest Series, with 114 not out against South Africa. The opening stand with Vikram Solanki of 200 runs was the highest first-wicket partnership for England and provided the first instance of both England openers scoring centuries in the same innings.^[55] Trescothick maintained his form in the South Africa Test matches; a career-best 219 at The Oval completed a successful series in which he averaged 60.87.^[56]

In Bangladesh, scores in the nineties against both the President's XI and Bangladesh A were followed by a century in the first Test, and 60 in the second. He scored one half-century in the three ODIs, although England only used five batsman in the comfortable victories. England played poorly against Sri Lanka,^[57] with Trescothick finding it hard to build a large innings. He attempted to take control of the match with 70 at Colombo, as England tried to get something from the series, but was also criticised for poor catching.^[58][59]

His form in the tour to the West Indies in March and April 2004 was mixed. After several low scores in the Test series—Trescothick began with only 20 runs from his first five innings—he reached two half-centuries, but failed to make a substantial match-winning contribution. This poor touring form may have been the start of the troubles that would rule him out of international cricket in the future. Trescothick said, "The hardest thing for me has been the pitches. So far nets and the matches have been on average surfaces and runs have been hard work...In England you get used to good practice surfaces so the rhythm of batting comes pretty easy [sic]".^[60] However, he topped the England batting averages in the 7-match one-day series, with 267 runs including 130 in the 5th ODI and 82 from 57 balls in the 7th.^[2]

Back in England, Trescothick was called upon to captain England after Michael Vaughan sustained a knee injury. Although other England captains had seemed to suffer a lack of batting form, the extra authority did not affect Trescothick, and he forged a good partnership with debutant Andrew Strauss against New Zealand. This understanding developed in the second Test with a first-wicket partnership of 153; Trescothick went on to score 132, his sixth Test century.^[61] Trescothick's partnerships with Strauss were to average 52.35 in 52 innings.^[62] His first century against the West Indies followed in the second Test, and Trescothick became the first player to make centuries in both innings of a Test match at Edgbaston, and the ninth England player to score a century in each innings of a Test match.^[63][64] Trescothick was again England's best One Day International batsman in the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy, scoring 261 runs in just four innings, including a century in the final; he also took his fourth ODI wicket.

2004 and 2005 Ashes

The 2004–05 tour of Zimbabwe caused several players to voice their concerns about the Robert Mugabe regime, the security issues in the country, and the standard of the Zimbabwean team.^[65] Steve Harmison was the first to boycott the tour for "political and sporting reasons",^[66] and Flintoff was reported to be considering taking a moral stand himself. The England Chairman of Selectors, David Graveney, denied that the selectors would omit players who were unhappy with touring Zimbabwe and would put their absences down to injury.^[67] Flintoff and Trescothick were, however, "rested", allowing Kevin Pietersen to make his debut.^[68]

Trescothick used the time to prepare for the following series in South Africa, even taking up yoga in an attempt to bolster his performances abroad.^[69] In December 2004, he made 85 not out against an N.F. Oppenheimer XI in South Africa. A partnership of 152 with Strauss in the opening Test against South Africa was followed by a partnership of 273 in the second, in which they both scored over 130. This was a record opening partnership at Durban and England's first 200 opening stand since Gooch and Mike Atherton in 1991.^[70] Before this, the difference between his home and abroad average was over 20,^[71] and his third overseas century went a long way to counter this. With regard to his touring difficulties, Trescothick stated: "I wouldn't say I've put it to rest, but I've made a big step forward to putting it to rest. It's a mental battle for me, something I have to deal with and work hard to try to understand what is different.^[71] He made a further improvement with an even larger score of 180, as England won the fourth Test. After batting slowly alongside Ashley Giles, the fall of Matthew Hoggard's wicket soon afterward spurred Trescothick to start "unleashing ferocious shots", setting up an unlikely victory with Steve Harmison partnering him.^[72] In the matches preceding the 2005 Ashes series, England wrapped up two easy victories against Bangladesh. Trescothick scored 194 in the first Test, and 151 in the second.^[73] He also scored an unbeaten 100 in his 100th ODI against Bangladesh, surpassing Gooch's record of eight ODI centuries for England.^[74]

Trescothick fared better in 2005 than in the previous Ashes series, becoming the second highest run scorer in the series (behind the prolific Kevin Pietersen).^[75] During the third Test, he became the fastest player to reach 5,000 runs in Test cricket,^[76] and also achieved the notable feat of scoring over 1,000 Test runs in a calendar year for the third consecutive year: 1,004 in 2003, 1,003 in 2004, and 1,323 in 2005. He also had the dubious honour of becoming both Glenn McGrath's 500th and Shane Warne's 600th Test wicket during the series.^[77][78] Trescothick was named as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year for his achievements in 2005,^[79] and was awarded an MBE in the 2006 New Year honours list with the rest of the English team.^[80]

For the Test series against Pakistan, Trescothick was offered the captaincy once more due to an injury to Vaughan. He was unsure whether to accept but realised that as "unofficial second in command ... I believe it was the right thing to step up. It is exciting to think I could be in charge for a few weeks ... I know there is a chance I maybe won't be a one-match wonder this time – it could be the whole series, but being very close to Michael, I've seen the things it [captaincy] does to you".^[81] As it transpired, Trescothick scored 193 in the first innings (although England lost the match), and Vaughan returned for the second Test. Trescothick had considered leaving the tour early when his father-in-law had a serious accident, but stayed in Pakistan as fellow opener Andrew Strauss returned home to attend the birth of his first child.^[82]

2009 Champions League Twenty20

With Somerset runners-up in the English 2009 Twenty20 Cup, Trescothick and his county travelled to India to partake in the Champions League Twenty20 in October. Trescothick was described as having "been in sparkling form all season" and began the tournament under media scrutiny, given his previous difficulties playing on tour. There was speculation regarding any "recurrence of his stress-related illness that originally occurred in 2006", as this was to be his first overseas outing since an aborted attempt in 2008.^[140] Langer assured the media that Trescothick could pull out whenever he wished to.^[142] Somerset, who began the tour without Trescothick because he was arriving later than most of the squad, commenced their warm up with a victory over the Otago Volts.^[143] The opener arrived three days later, confident in his ability to complete the tour.^[144] Somerset began with a close victory against the Deccan Chargers on 10 October, winning from the last ball. Trescothick was dismissed for 14 from 12 in his first match outside England since 2006 "after offering a fleeting glimpse of his talent", according to ESPNcricinfo.^[145]

Trescothick had a recurrence of his difficulties and returned home on 15 October, citing the same "stress related illness".^[146] Trescothick signed a new three-year contract (with an optional fourth year) in December, and was named captain for the 2010 season.^[147]

Captaincy 2010 – 2015

Trescothick led Somerset into the 2010 season as captain, and began strongly in the County Championship with a century and four half-centuries from his first eight games, though he struggled in the newly formed Clydesdale Bank 40 with only 95 runs from the first five matches, and in the Friends Provident T20 173 runs at 21.62 with a best of 50.^[148] This half-century came on 25 June, where together with Kieron Pollard helped secure victory over Sussex, and was scored from 31 balls.^[149] In a Twenty20 match against Hampshire on 9 July at Taunton, Trescothick hit a half-century from 13 deliveries, including five sixes and five fours – a record fastest fifty in English domestic Twenty20 cricket. He was dismissed for 78 from only 32 balls.^[150] He led Somerset to runners-up position for all three English domestic competitions, losing out to Nottinghamshire in the County Championship, Hampshire in the Twenty20 and Warwickshire in the CB40 competition.^[151]

In 2011 Trescothick started off the county championship season strongly and was the first batsman in the country to score 1000 championship runs. He was awarded the 2011 season MVP (Most Valuable Player) award for his performances throughout the season.^[152] He ended 2011 with six centuries in the County Championship, batting with an average of 79.66 across the year. Somerset earned record financial returns that year,^[153] but again failed in the semi-final and final stages of all major competitions.^[154]

Across all three formats, Trescothick took 2,518 runs for his county. As 2012 – Trescothick's 19th season at Somerset – approached, there was talk of resting him from the newly formed one-day cricket championship the following year.^[155] Trescothick did not travel with the rest of the team to the Champions League T20 in India. He missed part of the 2012 domestic season due to an ankle injury, and struggled for form; he went seven four-day matches without a half-century until passing fifty against Sussex in August and going on to score a century.^[156] By the end of the season he had played only five one-day games, scoring 118 runs at 39.33, two T20 matches making only 31 runs in total, and nine County Championship games in which he scored 506 runs at 38.92, including two centuries.^[157] This was his lowest home-season aggregate since 1995.^[12] He nevertheless made a statement to the media voicing his wish to continue playing into his forties, and took up a winter commentary stint with Sky Sports to cover England's tour of India.^[158]

The 2013 season found Trescothick averaging only in the mid-twenties^[159] and failed to score a century for the first time since 1998.^[160] He remained the second-highest run maker for Somerset, behind only Nick Compton,^[161] and retained the captaincy for the 2014 season.^[160] He continued as a commentator and analyst for Sky Sports in the off-season, in particular during coverage of the 2014 World T20. He also publicly lent his support to England's Jonathan Trott during the latter's departure from the 2013–14 Ashes series, empathising with Trott's stress-related illness.^[162]

Trescothick began the 2014 season strongly. He scored 112 in a warm-up game against Middlesex,^[163] followed by 95 against a university team.^[164] Subsequent scores of 20, 17 and five in the next three innings prompted George Dobell of ESPNcricinfo to comment that "Trescothick does not look anything like the batsman he once was",^[165] but he returned to form on 28 April with a further century against Sussex. It was his first in the County Championship since 2012,^[166] and was followed on 22 May with a second hundred, against Durham at Taunton. This century came 618 days after the last time he scored a hundred at his home ground.^[167] He passed 1,000 runs for the season on 25 September against Yorkshire, in the final game of the year's County Championship.^[168]

In 2015, Trescothick scored over 1,000 runs in the season, including three centuries and eight fifties,^[169] and completed the milestone yet again in July 2016 against Nottinghamshire.^[170]

Continuing career after captaincy

In January 2016 after six seasons in the job Trescothick stood down from the Somerset captaincy to let experienced new overseas signing Chris Rogers lead the team.^[171] Trescothick finished his first season without the captaincy since retiring from England duty with a season average of over 53 and also became the Somerset cricketer with the highest number of first class catches in the history of the club.^[172] He extended his contract with Somerset for the 2017 season,^[173] during which he broke the record (previously held by Harold Gimblett) for most first-class centuries for Somerset,^[174] and signed another 12-month extension with Somerset in August 2017, to the end of the 2018 season, his 26th season with the county.^[175] On 25 September 2018, Trescothick took three consecutive slip catches as Craig Overton registered a hat-trick in the county championship against Notts. It was only the third time in first-class cricket that all three dismissals in a hat-trick had been caught by the same non–wicket-keeping fielder.^[176] On 27 June 2019, Trescothick announced that he would retire from professional cricket at the end of the 2019 season.^[177] His last on-field appearance came as a substitute fielder in the final few minutes of Somerset's County Championship game against Essex at Taunton on 26 September 2019. He was greeted with a standing ovation and left the field to a guard of honour from the opposition.^[178]

Test matches

Records:

• 1,000 runs in a calendar year: 1,003 (2003), 1,004 (2004), 1,323 (2005)^[182]
• First of two players to score a century in both innings at Edgbaston the other being Shai Hope (and the ninth player for England), 2004 v West Indies^[64]
• M.A. Aziz Stadium first wicket partnership record: 126 with Michael Vaughan, 2003–04 v Bangladesh
• Century by both openers in same innings,^[183] and Kingsmead first wicket partnership record: 273 with Andrew Strauss, 2004–05 v South Africa
• Multan Cricket Stadium second wicket partnership record: 180 with Ian Bell, 2005–06 v Pakistan
• Riverside Ground third wicket partnership record: 155 with Ian Bell, 2005 v Bangladesh
• The Oval third wicket partnership record: 268 with Graham Thorpe, 2003 v South Africa

One Day Internationals

Records:

• Most consecutive ODIs for England: 92 (8 July 2000 – 25 September 2004)^[184]
• Beausejour Stadium fourth wicket partnership record: 110 with Andrew Flintoff, 2003–04 v West Indies
• Bellerive Oval first wicket partnership record: 165 with Nick Knight, 2002–03 v Australia
• Civil Service Cricket Club, Stormont fourth wicket partnership record: 142 with Ian Bell, 2006 v Ireland
• Riverside Ground first wicket partnership record: 171 with Alec Stewart, 2000 v West Indies
• County Ground, Bristol second wicket partnership: 124 with Nick Knight, 2001 v Australia
• England and The Oval first wicket partnership record: 200 with Vikram Solanki, 2003 v South Africa
• Rose Bowl fourth wicket partnership record: 53 with Paul Collingwood, 2004 v Sri Lanka