While under-fire Alastair Cook looks to take a fresh guard in Southampton, England skipper Joe Root has vocally backed the veteran to come good. Cook has so far failed to convert starts against India in the ongoing Test series. He was bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin in the first Test and the Indian pacers didn’t let him settle down there onwards.
Cook, the highest run scorer in whites for England, averages just 19.21 in eight Tests he has played this year. His numbers look even poorer in the current series- 16.00. Root though, backs Cook to score freely and sighted the pace-friendly pitches as a reason for his dip in form.
“Alastair Cook is a world-class performer,” Root said. “He’s proven that time and time again. I’d like you to write him off because every time he’s written off he comes back and scores a double-hundred.”
Root bats for Alastair Cook
“We have to be realistic about the surfaces we’ve been playing on. Throughout the whole summer, they’ve been very much tailored around seam bowling and we’ve had some very bowler-friendly conditions. There’s been a lot of cloud cover, the ball has seamed around quite a lot and it’s obviously swung as well. And the hardest point to bat is opening. Both sides’ top orders have struggled and it might be that’s the case again in Southampton.” he added.
Root pointed out Cook’s experience brings a lot to the table. He also went on to say that there won’t be any chopping when it comes to the senior most batter. “But there’s no one with more experienced currently in Test cricket than him. If you watch him apply himself in training, or the way he goes about his practice, he doesn’t look like someone who is thinking about jacking it in. He seems very dedicated. I’m sure he will be calling upon all of that going into that game and giving himself the best chance. Yes, 100% I want him for the rest of the series.” Root said.