England batsman Alastair Cook: One day I might wake up and think ‘I’m done’
Alastair Cook has suggested he will continue his England career beyond the current Ashes series.
Ahead of the third Test in Perth – his 150th for England – Cook admitted he was taking his career ‘game by game’.
The former captain endured a poor start to the series, scoring just 83 runs in six innings, but rediscovered his form in the fourth match with a magnificent double century.
More: Cricket
Asked whether the final match in Sydney would be his last Ashes appearance, Cook told BT Sport: ‘The problem with this question is I just do not know.
‘It does take a lot of effort to perform, playing for England. It’s a huge amount of sacrifice to do and one day I might just wake up and say “you know what, I’m done with it”.
“One day I might just wake and say you know what, I’m done with it”
An open, honest and revealing interview as Alistair Cook spoke to @MichaelVaughan on 2017, the #Ashes and his future…#ItsTheAshespic.twitter.com/Z3OfzY9tSd
— The Ashes on BT Sport (@btsportcricket) January 4, 2018
‘That’s how I’ve lived my life. It’s how it happened with the captaincy. I woke up one morning on that India tour right near the end and knew I wouldn’t captain again, no matter how tough the decision was.
‘The way I got through the first three games liked I did here and stayed strong shows I’ve still got quite a lot of cricket left in me and I want to carry on.’
Cook’s form during this tour has mirrored his performances throughout the year, with a number of low scores interrupted by a mammoth hundred.
‘There’s been two big double hundreds and not much else in between,’ Cook said. ‘Here it was quite ropey and then last week it all clicked and I probably played as well as I’ve ever played.
‘Most of my career I’ve been quite consistent, without the big scores, and the last two years I’ve been a bit more inconsistent but when I’ve got in I’ve gone quite big.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever batted as fluently as I did at the MCG.’
Cook, who stood down as England captain at start of 2017, also said years spent in choirs as a child have helped him become one of most prolific batsmen to ever play the game.
More: Cricket
‘You’re either singing on TV or in front of a full cathedral and there’s a bit of pressure there,’ he added.
‘I know it sounds funny but if you get used to doing it then performing in front of people playing cricket is the same sort of thing.’
MORE: Joe Root pays tribute to ‘unbelievable’ Barmy Army after Melbourne draw
[contf] [contfnew]
METRO
[contfnewc] [contfnewc]