• England v India, 4th Test, The Oval

Strauss vowing to keep improving

Andrew Strauss led England to victory over India at Edgbaston to put England at the top of the Test tree © AFP

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Andrew Strauss has insisted the mindset within the England camp will ensure the players do not rest on their laurels after making it to the top of the world rankings.

Taking a 3-0 lead over India in the four-Test series propelled England to the top of the world rankings, capping a stellar couple of years under the leadership of captain Strauss and coach Andy Flower.

The aim now for England is to carry on their progress and cement their place as one of Test cricket's great sides. Strauss feels there is a long way to go before England can be mentioned in the same breath as the West Indies teams of the 1980s and 1990s and the great Australian sides led by Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting.

"I don't think we are near there at this stage," Strauss said ahead of the fourth Test with India at The Oval which gets underway on Thursday. "Those teams created a legacy for themselves by playing well for the best part of a decade. We have done it for the last couple of years. We are not trying to be seen to be anything, we just want to win every Test match and how that is looked at will be seen in years to come.

"It is not a time for us to get carried away. We have to keep our feet on the ground, keep doing what we have done and trying to improve as a side and not taking any easy options. If we continue to do that we can continue getting the same results."

The Oval Test is the final one of the summer for England and Strauss is determined to see the side prepare for winter clashes with Pakistan and Sri Lanka on the back of a good showing.

He said: "There is plenty for us to keep going and be motivated by and we have a good basis to keep challenging ourselves.

"It has always been a long-term goal of ours to get to No. 1 so it was a special moment to achieve it last week. We celebrated the fact we had achieved one of our goals, but now we are back in training again the rankings become secondary to what you do on a day-to-day basis in preparation for a Test match.

"We go out trying to improve and win every Test match and if you do that the rankings will take care of themselves. We have got to challenge ourselves to keep improving and work hard to do that.

"There is always that temptation to take your foot off the gas and feel comfortable with what you have done. That's not the nature of international sport. You have to keep improving or teams will catch you up very quickly."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.