LET’S GO FOR IT!
Cook pledges to give the Aussies a taste of that one-day mindset
ALASTAIR COOK is no longer carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders but is looking forward to the upcoming Ashes buoyed by the fresh mood of optimism sweeping English cricket.
This time last year, with the humiliating 5-0 Ashes whitewash still seared into the consciousness, Kevin Pietersen’s bitter departure from the team a constant distraction and Cook’s own form patchy, the England captain’s position bordered on untenable.
Defeat to India at Lord’s, hard on the heels of a crushing loss to Sri Lanka at Headingley, saw Cook and his team close in on laughing-stock status.
But no- one is laughing as the Ashes approach. Smiling perhaps, as the carefree style in which first Cook’s Test team and, more recently, Eoin Morgan’s one- day outfit have cast off the shackles during what has already proved a memorable summer of cricket.
With run rates through the roof, Cook’s form in decent order, a new coach and a five-pronged bowling attack possessing more than an air of menace, England will begin the first Test in Cardiff on July 8 in fine fettle. Even the World Cup debacle and Peter Moores’ subsequent sacking are fading memories.
For Cook, with 114 Test caps, 27 hundreds, 9,000 runs, three Ashes triumphs and an away win in India, there is little he hasn’t achieved.
But the Essex opener insisted: ‘I think winning the Ashes this summer would be the biggest achievement of a lot of our careers.
‘From where we have been, if we did win the Ashes at The Oval (fifth Test) that would be a remarkable achievement and one I would be very proud of.
‘There is a good feel about English cricket now from the guys over the last five or six weeks playing against New Zealand. The support we’re getting from people is a different kind of support from what I have ever experienced throughout my eight or nine years; that general optimism and excitement about English cricket.
‘It was an incredibly tough time last summer. Losing that Test series against Sri Lanka and that fourth day at Headingley is as tough as it can get.’
After one of the most spectacular one- day series wins in history against New Zealand, Cook says England’s attacking mindset will not change a jot when the main event gets under way.
‘With the group of players we have, it suits us,’ he said. ‘People like Moeen Ali, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Joe Root, they are looking to take the attack to the opposition and that’s when they play their best. We want to see people do that.
‘The challenge is sticking true to that under the pressure of a bigger series. No disrespect to New Zealand but the Ashes is more high- profile. I think we can. All we’re asking is for people to play their natural way.
‘You want the guys to play the way they want to. I think people have enjoyed the fact there’s been slightly more aggressive cricket.’ Cook (left) will be one of four senior players — alongside Stuart Broad, Jimmy Anderson and Ian Bell — who will return to the Test side to add valuable experience after missing the one-day series. The 5-0 drubbing suffered Down Under left deep scars, but with home conditions and a new-found spring in their step, England’s players are looking forward again. Crucial to the team’s long and short-term prospects will be the speed with which Cook can forge an effective working relationship with new coach Trevor Bayliss.
England’s captain met the Australian for the first time briefly at Lord’s yesterday before heading out for dinner last night and departing today for a four-day training camp in Spain — where Cook confirmed yesterday that golf and team bonding will be higher on the agenda than practice matches and nets.
‘You need to have the captain and coach totally aligned,’ Cook said. ‘It is very important. Paul Farbrace (assistant coach) will play a big role in this relationship to start with.
‘We can’t pretend it is ideal meeting the coach for the first time a week before the Ashes but I remember turning up to India after the bombings in 2008. We had two net sessions and Strauss got back-toback hundreds.
‘We did lose the game but played some really good cricket for four days. You can overcome a lack of preparation, it can be exciting and a different way of doing things.
‘I’m really looking forward to (dinner) tonight. It’s the first time I’ve had a coach I do not know at all. I think it’s really exciting to have a guy from the outside, a totally different set of eyes looking at us.’ Hardys of Australia are proud sponsors of England cricket. Show your support this summer with #HardysENG or #HardysAUS to win prizes.