England's Run Machine!!!

The third Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham against Pakistan saw England captain Alastair Cook creating history as he became the highest run getter for England across all the three formats surpassing Kevin Pietersen’s tally of 13779 international runs. For a person who loves stats and likes to analyze the numbers would easily be overwhelmed by Cook’s numbers as his Test runs, hundreds and averages are significantly but equally distributed across each and every opponent and under various diverse conditions.

With 10,557 runs in 132 matches, he scores almost 80 runs per Test match which certainly puts him in the list of Test match greats, but his numbers in Asia are something that are really out of the box. In an era where people have found it harder and harder to score runs in Asia, Alastair Cook has not only outclassed his contemporaries but also those who came before him. With 8 hundreds in Asia, the highest number of centuries by a non-Asian batsman, Cook’s tally of 2252 runs at 60.21 in Asia is simply phenomenal. Perhaps, Hashim Amla is the only one amongst the current crop of non-Asian batsmen who can challenge Cook’s stature as far as batting in Asia is concerned.

Cook showed glimpses of greatness when he scored 104 at Nagpur in his debut Test

So, what’s so special about Alastair Cook? Are his numbers that very much define Alastair Cook or is it his calm and serene presence at the crease that gives us a belief that batting is still all about application and determination. Well, though it is true that his numbers as well his calming presence at the crease speak a lot about him, the aura that very surrounds Alastair Cook is by his monk-like attitude towards the game. He is just unfazed or unaffected by any kind of situation whatsoever. Neither he becomes too ecstatic after getting to a hundred nor looks too disappointed at getting out for a duck. His mind still works like a student of the game even when he is 200 not out and at the same time, always seems to have that belief of getting a big score next time around whenever he falls cheaply. Now you need that kind of attitude to succeed, don’t you? To one, Cook may seem an old-fashioned, one-dimensional, dull or boring batsman, but he gets those hard runs and is willing to put the hard grind every time he walks out to bat. Be it Galle against Sri Lanka in 2007 or Gabba in the first Ashes Test in 2010 or Ahmedabad against India in 2012, Cook has always thrived under the toughest of the situations. In fact, he has this habit of conquering such extremely challenging situations and on the way, he has not only led the English side from the front but also taught them how to bat under such demanding circumstances.

Chef’s career so far in his England T-shirt has not at all been easy and his batting has been questioned and his captaincy been scrutinized, but, he let his bat and tactics on the field do the talking. The way he bounced back from the biggest lows of his career to reach the new heights has been remarkable. Taking you back to the summer of 2010, after having a disastrous time with the bat throughout the summer, Cook was just an innings away from being dropped in the third Test against Pakistan at The Oval. But a resilient second-innings hundred against a good Pakistani bowling attack just somehow ensured his place in the side. And what followed then was simply incredible. He just needed that bit of a hiccup where his back was against the wall and then came the runs galore. The Ashes series that followed saw Alastair Cook producing 766 runs in 5 Tests down under which included three centuries and that certainly played a massive role in England winning the Ashes down under after 24 long years.

Cook's unbeaten 235 at Gabba set the tone for England as they went to win the Ashes series down under after 24 years

Moving on to the summer of 2014, Cook again faced one of the biggest lows of his career when England lost the second Test to India at Lord’s.  With Cook in an awful form and England team going nowhere, Cook-the batsman as well as Cook-the captain were in crises and calls of sacking him as a captain were spreading like wildfire not only around the British media but also around the cricketing fraternity. But, in spite of all the criticism and negative publicity, Cook remained calm and managed to maintain his composure and was all but determined to turn the things around at Southampton in the third Test. So, champions don’t give it up, do they? And   Cook worked extremely hard on his game, especially on his forward press and scored a fighting 95 on the first day. Yes, those were ugly runs, not at all anywhere near to his best, but runs are runs and most importantly, he led the team from the front. He followed it up with an unbeaten 70 in the second innings and England went on to win the Test match as well. Cook was back, back amongst the runs and perhaps for the first time since Ashes 2013 down under, looked the Cook we knew so well. Smiling, confident and doing what he knows the best, bat and bat and bat.

Between May 2013 to April 2015, perhaps were the toughest two years of Chef’s career where he went without a Test century for 35 long Test innings. The boy who raced to 25 Test centuries indeed had to wait for a long, long time for his 26^th. In the same time, Cook not only lost his One-day captaincy but also lost his spot in the one-day team and was sacked just prior to 2015 World Cup down under. But, either sides of these two years, Cook had a wonderful time with the bat. His records are just the testimony to his hard work, determination, application and consistency. To add to it, the fact that he has been the opener throughout his career only glorifies his achievements as the life as an opener is never easy.

His Test career so far has been remarkable and is a highlight in itself, but the Ashes series down under in 2010 and the winter series against India in India in 2012  where he scored three consecutive hundreds are some of the glorious moments of his illustrious career. He has already scored over 10,500 Test runs and is only 31 and if he keeps himself fit and is as hungry as ever, no one can stop him from playing for another 5 to 6 years. And if he does so, we could see some of the records in Test Cricket being given a serious scare. Well, that’s the thing for a debate may be sometime later, as of now it’s time to salute England’s run machine- Alastair Cook, the England’s all time run getter!!!