I feel sorry for Alastair Cook. It’s no secret that the English media, and certain fans, love to build someone up and then knock them down. We see it in other sports all the time. You’re either brilliant – a world class hero, a pin-up boy, a genius or an all time great – or you’re a waste of space, a steaming pile of donkey manure or even worse, Luis ‘the biter’ Suarez. But what makes Cook a unique case is that his employers have built him up as much as anyone. In order to justify...
And you thought the Ashes nightmare was over …
As I boarded the train home on Monday evening I thought I’d better check my phone to see how Cook & Robson had ended. Ended they had, and numerous of their colleagues had too. 57-5….what the hell had happened?! Being a chap in his mid-30’s I was brought-up on England in the 1990’s. Doing battle against some class sides, sometimes winning, but more than often being taught how one should really play cricket. I remember seeing the likes of Boon, Border, Healey, Hughes, etc...
Do the decent thing: day five at Headingley
One of the most fascinating aspects of yesterday’s high drama was this: Alastair Cook’s future clearly hung on the outcome, but it was an outcome over which he wielded no influence whatsoever. Yesterday was perhaps the most important day’s cricket in Cook’s career, and yet he at no point stepped on to the field of play. Helpless, he watched from the balcony as his batsmen decided his fate. Had England capitulated by early afternoon, Cook would have woken up this morning...
The Three Stooges – A Headingley Autopsy
It’s tempting to just blame Cook. He’s an easy target. Few people seem to like him. He’s going through another one of his batting malaises (they’ve happened before and they’ll happen again) and his captaincy yesterday was lamentable. However, let’s not forget that Cook’s captaincy is simply a product of the Andy Flower era. Under Flower’s iron fist, England became utterly dependent on stats and pre-determined methodologies. Plans were determined before games and Flower’s captains stuck...
Your views: day four at Headingley
There is so much we could say, we just don’t know where to start. So we won’t. It’s over to you – please air your views and comments about today’s events below.
We’re guessing you’ll have a lot on your mind. But don’t forget, this match isn’t actually over yet…
Your views: day four at Headingley
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