Alastair Cook retires from international cricket with Fifth Test between England and India at The Oval to be his last hurrah

ALASTAIR COOK has announced his retirement from international cricket, with the Fifth Test between England and India his last hurrah.

The Essex opener, 33, will bring the curtain down on his record-breaking career after the final Test of the summer, which starts on Friday at The Oval.

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Cook has been an ever-present in England's five-day team since his 2006 debut, breaking a host of records in the process.

But a difficult series this summer, scoring 13, 0, 21, 29, 17, 17 and 12 appears to be the final straw for Cook - ending a glittering 12-year Test career.

Announcing his retirement, Cook said: “Although it is a sad day, I can do so with a big smile on my face knowing I have given everything and there is nothing left in the tank.

"I have achieved more than I could have ever imagined.

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“I wish the England team every success in the future, and I will be watching with great excitement.”

ECB Chairman Colin Graves added: “Alastair’s selfless dedication to the England cause and his desire to succeed are an object lesson to any professional cricketer.

"As our highest ever Test run-scorer and most capped player, he fully deserves to be remembered as one of England’s greatest ever cricketers.

After notching a century on his debut, Cook has gone on to play 160 consecutive Test matches - beating Allan Border's all-time record of 153 in a row.

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He scored 12,254 runs at an impressive 44.88 average.

The former Test captain boasts a top score of 294 - set against India in 2011 - which was one of 32 centuries, to go with his 56 half-tons for England.

Cook is still the youngest Englishman to score 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, 5,000 and 6,000 Test runs.

On top of that, he's the youngest batsman from any country to reach 6,000, 7,000, 8,000, 9,000, 10,000, 11,000 and 12,000 runs in the five-day format.

But the Bedford boy has finally called time on his international career.

And it would be fitting if "Chef" could roll back the years and get himself on The Oval honours board one more time this week.