Alastair Cook has been given the dreaded vote of confidence by England coach Andy Flower after concerns increased surrounding the form of England's opening batsman. Cook's relative lack of form has been a cause of intense anxiety for many England fans in the build-up to the Ashes cricket series but Flower believes that there is no reason to worry, despite Cook scoring just five and nine in the warm-up win over Western Australia.
Flower revealed that he has no great concerns over the batsman, stating: "It's one game, two innings. I think he's going to do well". Cook's less than impressive overall record against Australia has also come under the spotlight in certain quarters since that performance, with the batsman averaging just 26.21 against them in a total of 10 Tests.
England kick off their crucial game against South Australia tomorrow and Cook may well view this as his last chance to make a mark on the England set-up before the opening Ashes Test later this month, especially in light of Flower's comments that the upcoming match at the Adelaide Oval will represent "vital preparation" for the England camp, who are desperate to upset the current Ashes betting odds.
If the 25-year-old fails to impress, England do, of course, have other options available to them and could decide to move up Jonathan Trott from number three or look to Ian Bell to move up from number six. Whilst not the end of the world, making such alterations so late in the game wouldn't be ideal for England as they seek to show the Aussies they have what it takes to keep hold of the little urn.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment