Alastair Cook rolls back years as England legend hits 71in final Test against India
ALASTAIR COOK went through his full repertoire of batting skills as he notched a patient 71 in his farewell Test.
Let’s be honest, it wasn’t scintillating stuff but they are the qualities that have sustained Cook over 12 years and more than 12,000 Test runs.
Block, leave, clip off the legs, pull, square cut and pushed cover drive. That has been Cook’s modus operandi throughout his record-breaking career and it was no different in his final match for his country.
But just when he was looking as well set as he has ever done for a ton, he was out. The thinnest of inside edges off Indian paceman Jasprit Bumrah sent Cook's middle stump out of the ground.
As he departed, after hitting eight fours in a knock spanning 190 deliveries, Cook responded to a rapturous reception from the crowd with just a modest wave of his bat.
Cook and opening partner Keaton Jennings had travelled to the Oval on the Tube, wearing England track suits and attracting a few curious glances from the rush hour workers.
Then the Essex man was presented with a special memento with ‘161’ sewn into the material below the national crest to commemorate his aggregate of Test matches.
In the ceremony, his former captain and now team supremo Andrew Strauss described him as “England’s greatest batsman.”
Cook was given a guard of honour by India’s fielders and skipper Virat Kohli shook his hand.
And after Joe Root won the toss for the fifth time out of five in the series, Cook got off the mark with a pushed cover drive off Ishant Sharma.
He clipped the same bowler to the mid-wicket boundary and then cut and pulled – his absolute trademark shots - Bumrah for successive boundaries.
Cook was dropped on 39 by Ajinkya Rahane in the gully off Ishant and reached fifty off 139 balls with a push down the ground off Mohammed Shami.
It was the first half-century in the series by an opener from either team.
And, having seem Jennings exit for 23 with the score on 60, Cook put on an important 73 with Moeen Ali.
Cook's dismissal was promptly followed by those of Root and Jonny Bairstow for ducks - a reminder of the backbone Cook has provided for so long to the England top-order.
