In the December issue of All Out Cricket – in shops on November 3 – Ed Davis sits down with England ODI skipper Alastair Cook to talk about his record-breaking career, the one-day captaincy and whether Mike Atherton would make it into his ideal limited-overs batting line-up. Presented below are some choice quotes that didn’t make it into the mag…
On keeping a cool head when the ball is flying everywhere…
It’s tough. You’ve got to think on your feet, but it’s important to try and stay calm and not overcompensate because that can make things worse. It’s the most obvious side of captaincy, changing the field and tinkering with things, but it’s not the be all and end all. A lot of captaincy work goes on behind the scenes, off the field. The tactical stuff you get better and better at, and it’s the side most people see and concentrate on, but it’s only a small part of it.
On managing bowlers…
First and foremost, you’ve got to make sure the bowler is happy with the field he’s bowling to – if he’s fretting about where he’s going to get hit he’s not going to be able to bowl as well as you need him to. But sometimes bowlers, say when they’re in the middle of a spell, can be quite narrow-minded and not think about the big picture and all the plans you’ve got for getting a particular batsman out. So the skill is making sure the bowler is up to speed with what you’re trying to do, where you’re trying to get the ball to go, and making sure they’re comfortable with it.
On setting goals…
I am quite big on setting goals, but I never make them public. Doing that only gives you something for people to comment on if you don’t manage to achieve them…
On his fantasy one-day XI…
Oh god… no idea [thinks for several minutes, toys with the idea of picking an entire team of left-handers but ultimately rejects it]. How about this lot then, you’ll pretty quickly get the idea of where I’m going with this: Graham Gooch, John Stephenson, Nasser Hussain, Keith Fletcher, Alan Lilley, James Foster, Derek Pringle, Neil Foster, Ray East, John Childs and John Lever. That’s not a bad side really, come to think of it [for those of you not up on your 70s and 80s cricket, Cook has just named an XI comprised of the first Essex players that have come into his head. We’re not entirely sure why, but we decide to let him off].
On England’s pre-match routine…
The bowling coach does the bowlers, the batting coach does the batters, everyone goes to the fielding coach and then the soft ones go and see the male body-toucher [AOC suggests that massages clearly aren’t Cook’s thing]. No. What was your first clue?
To read the full interview, check out All Out Cricket issue 86, in shops on November 3. You know it makes sense…
