cricket Brian Rose stated that Trescothick had made "terrific progress". Trescothick maintained prolific form throughout the season despite a foot injury, scoring 1,343 runs at an average of 61.04 to guide Somerset to the Division 2 championship. He was awarded a benefit year in 2008, following on from successful surgery on an injured metatarsal. He remains firm, however, on his decision to stay out of the England team for the sake of his health. On 15 March 2008, Somerset announced that Trescothick had decided to pull out of the county's pre-season tour of the UAE after suffering a recurrence of his condition, leading many to speculate that, given this latest setback, it seemed increasing unlikely that Trescothick would represent England again. Somerset's director of cricket Brian Rose, however, stated that he didn't "see the setback as a major problem" and that Trescothick would be able to play for Somerset in the following season, and "for many years" after. He would never return to international level, however, and announced his retirement from international cricket on 22 March 2008. He stated that he had "tried on numerous occasions to make it back to the international stage and it has proved a lot more difficult than [he] expected" and repeated his desire to continue playing domestic cricket. He later stated that it was his decision to withdraw from Somerset's tour of Dubai that prompted his decision. In response, Angus Fraser wrote: "Obviously, it is sad to see such a dedicated, patriotic and likeable man forced to give up something that patently meant so much to him, but the inner torment that came with attempting to overcome the mental illness that prevented him from touring with England for more than two years had to be brought to an end. It was doing Trescothick and his family no good at all. Representing your country is a source of huge pride, but there are far more important things in life". Fraser also wrote: "It was in Pakistan that Marcus Trescothick's mental illness began to stir and the opener has not played an overseas test since". After an excellent domestic season for Somerset, including 184 in a 40-over match against Gloucestershire (his highest List A score), Trescothick released his autobiography, Coming Back to Me, on 1 September 2008, explaining that he had suffered from anxiety attacks since the age of 10, and that playing domestic cricket meant