India series shows Test cricket is alive and kicking: Root
Southampton, Sept 3 : The ongoing five-match series against India shows that Test cricket is still alive and kicking, said skipper Joe Root after England secured a 60-run win in the fourth rubber to take a series-clinching 3-1 lead.
“I think it’s a really good sign for Test cricket. It shows that for me Test cricket is still alive and kicking – very much at the pinnacle of the sport,” Root said.
“Credit to India – they’ve played some really fine cricket throughout, not just this game but the whole series. It must have been great viewing for people at home to see the way that especially the first game and this one, how tight they’ve been, how it swung both ways.”
Root said he was confident of a win with so many bowling options at his disposal as England’s potent attack dismissed world No 1 India for 273 and 184 in the two innings to secure the win.
“I felt like I had huge amounts of options and having points of difference in attack. In this game, having the ball spinning both ways, having a left-arm angle and three fantastic seam bowlers that all do very different things,” he said.
“I felt I always had, from a captain’s view, something different to turn to which on a surface like that a really important thing. Some might say overkill with options, but for me it felt like a really good balance against that team on that surface.”
Cook To Retire After 5th Test Against India
Southampton, Sept 3: England’s Test opener and leading run-scorer Alastair Cook on Monday announced that he will retire from international cricket after the fifth Test against India.
“After much thought and deliberation over the last few months I have decided to announce my retirement from international cricket at the end of this Test series against India,” Cook was quoted as saying by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
“Although it is a sad day, I can do so with a big smile on my face knowing I have given everything and there is nothing left in the tank,” The 33-year-old added.
Cook was the leading batsman in two of England’s greatest overseas triumphs in Test history, England’s Ashes win in 2010/11, and their victory in India in 2012/13, according to the statement issued by ICC.
However, his form has waned in recent times, and despite scoring double hundreds against the West Indies and Australia within the last year, he has averaged less than 35 since giving up the captaincy at the end of 2016, a move many expected to rejuvenate him.
Cook has only passed fifty once this year, and has decided that now is the right time to call it a day.
Southampton, Sept 3: England’s Test opener and leading run-scorer Alastair Cook on Monday announced that he will retire from international cricket after the fifth Test against India.
