Skipper Cook plays down speculation on Test future

Alastair Cook tried to dampen speculation Tuesday about his future as England's Test skipper after admitting that he could quit following the current tour of India.

In a press conference on the eve of the first Test, Cook was questioned about his comments in this month's Cricketer magazine in which he said he did not know much longer he would carry on at the helm.

The left-handed opener, who is set to break Michael Atherton's record of 54 Tests as England captain in the first Test in Rajkot, confirmed the substance of the interview but said it had been blown out of proportion.

"When someone asks 'For how long you see yourself as the captain' ... I said I don't know, it could be two months which could be the end of this series or it could be six months or the next one or two years," he said.

"This is the kind of answer I gave and obviously headlines have been made.

"I gave an honest answer to an interview question (and) as always it can get blown out a little bit. My situation hasn't changed.

"No one is talking about it in the dressing room, no one's asked me in the dressing room. So to me it's business as usual." 

Cook, who became England captain in 2012 and promptly led his side to a 2-1 series win in India that year, also said he would take every series as it comes before making any decision on his future.

In the Cricketer interview, Cook also said he was open to the idea of continuing as a Test batsman without the pressure of captaincy.

Cook has won 24 of his Tests as captain, a tally that includes two home Ashes series triumphs. 

His tally of 10,688 runs in 135 Tests is the highest by any England batsman and includes a century on debut, against India in Nagpur in 2006.

After recently becoming a father for a second time, the 31-year-old admitted that he found the long tours with the England side a wrench while insisting he was remained deeply proud of captaining his country.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan told BBC radio on Monday that Cook could relinquish the leadership of the team either following the India series or after the 2017/18 Ashes tour of Australia.

"These next six or seven weeks are not crucial for Cook, he is breaking records and he has four or five years left as a batsman, if his mind wants to play that long," said Vaughan.

"He'd be a real good sounding board and be able to see when the new captain is under stress. He would be the perfect foil."

Source: AFP