Alastair Cook is in no mood to call a time over his international career despite a modest show with the bat so far in the Ashes series Down Under. Cook will be donning his 150th Test cap in Perth Test, the same place where he won his 100th Test cap. He has not lived up to the expectations of England and his fans but ruled out every rumor of his retirement.
“I haven’t made any decision on anything. All my focus is on this game, the biggest of our lives coming up,” he said.
Former Ashes players Kevin Pietersen and Mitchell Johnson targeted Cook for his poor form and they believe his career will definitely get an early end after this Ashes series. Reacting to these comments, former skipper said “For the people who are saying that, they’ve had no contact time with me. They wouldn’t know the extra nets I’ve been doing behind closed doors. I was with (my batting coach) yesterday for an hour-and-a-half in the morning, desperate to keep working on my game.”
“That’s probably not a guy who’s given in. To be honest with you, I have no idea (when I’ll retire). And I’ve said that since I gave up the captaincy,” he added.
Cook has toured Australia few times and he is a witness to both victory and debacle. However, he believes this England team can make a strong statement in this series. “I will say this about this England side, I’ve never seen a side a work as hard as this side,” said southpaw.
“Win, lose or draw, whether we play well or we play rubbish, the effort from the guys is unbelievable. There’s a group of men in there, 16 or 17 of them, desperate to do well,” he concluded.
The third Test will commence from December 14 at Perth’s WACA stadium, which is hosting its last Ashes Test after serving the format for five decades.
