In international cricket, fortunes change rather drastically. A couple of years back, England were on an all-time high having beaten India in India to create history. This was followed by the 3-0 Ashes triumph at home. Alastair Cook was being hailed as a great leader, even though he wasn’t always contribution handsomely. However, even since Cook and his side landed in Australia for the return Ashes, things have changed dramatically for both the England captain and his side, and for the worse. The fact that Cook hasn’t scored many runs during the period has made matter extremely tough for him.
Cook’s last century came more than a year back when he made 130 against New Zealand at Leeds on May 24, 2013. Since then, he has failed to come anywhere near the three-figure mark. Even in the home Ashes he struggled to score big, but the fact that England won the series 3-0 meant that his weaknesses were overlooked. He made 13 and 50 at Nottingham, 12 and 8 at Lord’s, 62 and 0 at Manchester, 51 and 22 at Chester-le-Street and 25 and 34 at The Oval. Notably, Cook crossed the half-century thrice, but was dismissed soon after. He got other starts as well, but failed to carry on.
Things were rather similar in the return Ashes in Australia. He began the series with 13 and 65 at Brisbane, followed it up with 3 and 1 at Adelaide, and made 72 and a duck at Perth. England had lost the Ashes by now, but Cook continued to fail, as he managed only 27 and 51 at Melbourne. With the series gone and nothing at stake, Cook finished the series with identical scores of 7 and 7 at Sydney. The England skipper’s scores were rather similar to his performance in the Ashes back at home. But, his failures stood out in Australia since his team was thrashed 5-0.
The recently-concluded home series against Sri Lanka has put Cook’s position as a batsman and captain under further trouble. Sri Lanka had never won a Test series in England, and no one expected them to win this time as well. But, they did and Cook ended up being embarrassed. The fact that Cook failed in this series as well meant the calls for his head have become stronger. For the record, Cook’s scores in the series were 17, 28, 17 and 16. These figures are totally unacceptable as a captain and batsman.
Cook’s struggles in the last year are in stark contrast to his earlier record, when he churned out big scores with amazing consistency. He made 294 against India at Birminghan in August 2011, 115 against South Africa at The Oval in July 2012, and 176, 122 and 190 in the series against India in India. It was a sensational performance which led England to create history. The only positive for Cook is that England will be facing India next, and that too in home conditions.
--By A Cricket Analyst
