Cook in no mood to step down as captain
THeRe could not be a greater incentive for england to end the Test season with a flourish than the chance to wrap up this series and possibly go back to no1 in the world by the end of the summer.
Such is the perfect storm that could bring a compelling series to a thrilling climax at The Oval when england try to seal a 3-1 victory against a Pakistan team who have proved worthy opponents under Misbah-ul-Haq.
no wonder Alastair Cook yesterday reiterated his desire to carry on as captain of a side who, whatever happens here, are nearer the start of their journey than the end which rapidly came for the last england team to reach the top.
It was fascinating to listen to Cook talk about the evolution of his captaincy from the dark days that followed the 5-0 thrashing in Australia to the point where he is the natural leader of this team while batting with a rare fluency.
‘It’s the most comfortable I’ve felt captaining a side,’ said Cook when asked ahead of today’s fourth Investec Test if he still wanted to carry on in charge. ‘I’m enjoying it after all those hard times and it seems wrong to give it up just yet.
‘I’m never going to be a Mike Brearley, tactically, or one of these innovators but the dressing room is in a good place and we seem to find ways to take 20 wickets and execute our plans.
‘I’ll sit down with Trevor Bayliss and Andrew Strauss at the end of this series to discuss whether I’m still the best man for the job, as we always do now, as much for my sanity as anything, but I don’t see why I shouldn’t carry on. Straussy is the boss, though, and might see it differently!’
It is unlikely that the last man to lead england to no1 in the world rankings would want to make a change just yet, particularly with a five-Test series in India this winter and both South Africa and Australia soon to come.
Victory now would complete a highly satisfying Test summer for Cook and england after their triumph in South Africa last winter and set them up nicely for those tougher challenges to come over the next 18 months.
Cook said that england will be unchanged with the series in the balance and The Oval pitch having a tinge of green, even though coach Bayliss, with one eye on the future, is itching to get Adil Rashid into the side.
‘It’s more suited to pace bowling,’ insisted Cook of an Oval pitch that Surrey say will have more pace and bounce than edgbaston. ‘I think it will turn later in the game but our seamers are bowling well, while Moeen Ali took a massive stride forward in that last Test.
‘Sometimes, it is dangerous to look too far ahead. If we were 3-0 up, we could definitely have an eye on the winter but the summer is very much alive and international cricket isn’t about just giving somebody a go.’
Aiming high: Cook hopes that England can secure No 1 spot in the world as he and the rest of the team prepare at The Oval
It is an understandable view after the all-round team performance that saw england come back so strongly to pull off a famous win at edgbaston but James Vince, for one, remains in desperate need of a score to confirm his tour place.
There is a sense that Pakistan may have missed their chance to spring a surprise in this series in Birmingham and, certainly, the admirable Misbah was wrestling with his options yesterday, anxious to include a fifth bowler and worried about his seamers’ workloads.
whatever happens in south London, Pakistan have earned immense respect with their performances and it is a shame after such a good-natured series that the emotive subject of ball-tampering reared its ugly head this week.
It was a Pakistan TV presenter who suggested england were up to no good when they gained the reverse swing that decided the third Test rather than anybody involved in a visiting team, who forfeited the Oval Test of 2006 after being accused of ball-tampering themselves.
Yet Misbah did say he was ‘concerned’ when england suddenly managed to find reverse on Sunday and, in a role reversal, said that his bowlers will have to learn the skills that enabled england to master what was once a Pakistani art.
Take a look at what are meant to be incriminating pictures of Jimmy Anderson and Joe Root on the internet and it is hard to take the accusations seriously. They appear to be shining and cleaning the ball.
england’s progression to no 1 will still depend on India failing to win both of their last two Tests in the Caribbean against west Indies.
‘It would be a really good achievement,’ said Cook.