He was appointed as captain for the 2009 season, but stepped down from leading the side in late 2009, as he felt the pressures of the job were affecting his form. Oddly, that season he increased his career best tally to 211, again scored against Warwickshire at Edgbaston. McGrath had a more successful season in 2010 scoring 1,219 first-class runs and, in doing so, passed the thousand runs mark for the third time. He also scored important runs in both the 40 and 20-over competitions. However, knee injuries and sciatica occurred in the next two seasons, which restricted his effectiveness.