Future's unclear for Cook

Alastair Cook will not make any immediate decision on whether he will continue as England captain after he came under further scrutiny for their embarrassing collapse in the final Test against India.
Alastair CookAlastair Cook
Alastair Cook

The tourists collapsed from 103 without loss to 207 all out on a blameless pitch in Chennai as they succumbed to a 4-0 series defeat, ensuring they have now lost six of their last eight Tests.

Cook has been increasingly under pressure but insists he will not consider his position in the heat of the moment.

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He said: “This is not the place to be asking me these questions.

“I’ve got to go away and do some thinking, get back home and do it without the emotive side of what has happened over the last nine weeks.”

England’s Chennai humiliation, where they lost by an innings and 75 runs, means they have suffered a record equalling eight Test defeats this year.

Asked whether the team had stagnated over the last 12 months, Cook said: “It’s a fair shout. You can say whatever you want now, if I turn around and slag everyone off and use emotive language, you’re not doing your job.

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“When you lose games of cricket, you get criticised and you have to take it on the chin. All the guys gave it their all, we just weren’t good enough.

“That’s the culmination of the pressure being built up on us over a long period of time and a bit of mental tiredness. People will look at that and say it’s an excuse, but we haven’t been good enough in these conditions.”

England have played seven Tests in the space of a gruelling two months on the subcontinent, where they will leave with just one victory – in their opener against Bangladesh in Chittagong.

The writing was on the wall for them after losing to the Tigers for the first time in a Test match in Dhaka in October and they have been second best in almost every department to their Indian counterparts.