‘Cook has proved all his doubters wrong’

Cricket365
August 21, 2015

Former England fast bowler Chris Tremlett feels Test skipper Alastair Cook has done a superb job to turn the team's fortunes around in the Ashes, and has silences his many critics.

Cook was under heavy fire for much of the past year, both for his own form with the bat and for the team's results. He was dropped from the ODI side ahead of the World Cup, and there were calls for his head before the Ashes too.

But Tremlett, who has not played in the Ashes, was pleased with the Skipper's resilience, given he led England to Ashes victory with a match to spare.

Tremlett wrote on cityam.com: "Before the Ashes started the majority of people were saying that Alastair Cook should relinquish the England captaincy but he has proven all the doubters wrong.

"Alastair led the team extremely well and out-captained Australia skipper Michael Clarke in the same way that Clarke out-captained him during the whitewash series in 2013-14.

"I was part of the England squad that series and felt his tactics were bland, so it was great to see Cookie using his imagination. Even the declaration at Trent Bridge when Australia were nine wickets down; I cannot remember an England captain doing that for ages.

"His flexibility and initiative is far removed from the start of his tenure. I felt he started poorly as captain but he seems to have grown in confidence. When he’s talking to the media, for instance, he doesn't go into his shell anymore or duck the tough questions.

"He has earned the right to carry on as skipper and if Alastair is scoring runs and England are climbing the Test rankings, there is no reason at all why things need to change."

Tremlett also went on to discredit the idea that vice-captain Joe Root should take over the leadership, saying he's too young, and should focus on his superb form with the bat for now.

He added: "Joe looks to be a cheeky chappy in the dressing room, a new Graeme Swann almost. He likes a laugh and joke and to hang around with the lads. In some senses he is a bit immature, as he would be at that age.

"When you're captain, you have to divert yourself away from the rest of the group a little bit and can't necessarily get involved in those sorts of things quite as much.

"Let Joe have fun and continue to top the Test batting rankings. Then, in a few years or whenever his time comes to lead England, he will be a more rounded individual who also has a huge weight of runs behind him."