Hussain - emotional press conference (Getty Images)

By Myles Hodgson, PA Sport, Johannesburg

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Nasser Hussain's frustration after the tension of weeks of uncertainty and meetings prompted the most emotional of responses when he hinted at his unhappiness with his Lord's employers and indicated he would be considering his future as England captain.

A growing sense of unhappiness with the England and Wales Cricket Board has developed throughout the Zimbabwe crisis, during which Hussain has acted as both figurehead and captain of the team.

Hussain has shouldered the responsibility impressively, giving articulate and thoughtful answers to everything asked of him and providing the dignified public face of the England squad's views.

Behind the scenes, like many others in the squad, Hussain will almost certainly have let off steam on more than one occasion - you only have to watch him as captain on the field to know he is not a man who keeps his emotions in check easily.

Yet Hussain today brought some of the passion he has displayed as a cricketer into this crisis as he went public with his disappointment at the England and Wales Cricket Board for attempting to smooth relations with International Cricket Council chief executive Malcolm Speed, who felt the wrath of his tongue during a private meeting last Friday.

Speed had gone to meet the England squad to talk about the growing crisis but stepped into the room just as a letter from a group calling themselves the 'Sons and Daughters of Zimbabwe' had been given to the team threatening both the players and their families if they travelled to the country for their February 13 World Cup fixture.

As a father of two young children it is little wonder that Hussain, as the team's spokesman, let fly at Speed and demonstrated the team's frustration both at the game's rulers and the ECB for keeping the letter from the players for two days.

If that was not enough to tip Hussain over the brink, the diplomacy of ECB chief executive Tim Lamb and chairman David Morgan in approaching Speed in the meantime is perhaps a step too far for the England captain.

Lamb's insistence that, "I just expressed regret to Malcolm about the animated atmosphere," may not have been meant as an apology, but that was certainly how it was interpreted by both Hussain and Speed.

Furious already at the ECB for initially keeping the letter from the players, Hussain has rightly become annoyed at a half-hearted apology without consulting him and has led him to another period of soul-searching about whether he is the right man for the job.

He has proudly led his country for four years, overseeing memorable wins in Pakistan and Sri Lanka and a home series triumph over the West Indies but has appeared weary this winter both during the Ashes series hammering and the Zimbabwe discussions.

Lamb may not have realised it when he approached Speed outside the meeting room at the team's Cape Town hotel, but he may also have tipped Hussain over the brink, the consequences of which may leave a dispirited team without their powerful and charismatic leader after the World Cup.