Paul Farbrace, the England assistant coach, is confident Alastair Cook will base his upcoming decision over the Test captaincy on what is best for the team but expects him still to be in charge for next winter’s Ashes series.
The 4-0 defeat in India means England have lost six of their last eight Tests and Cook’s expected end of series review with Andrew Strauss, the director of cricket, in January will chiefly be a discussion over whether the captain remains the right man for the job.
Cook, who turns 32 on Christmas Day, has requested time to think after ending the tour understandably shattered by the result, not least the final-day collapse in Chennai where England were bowled out for 207 despite the captain and fledging opener Keaton Jennings putting on 103 for the first wicket.
“We’ve planned, and have been planning, for Cooky to be captain going to the Ashes in Australia next winter,” said Farbrace. “Personally, I hope that continues. We know he still has the support of the team, and he’s a very popular bloke and very popular captain.
“He’s got that decision to make – and as he said before the series started, he and Straussy will sit down in the new year and have a conversation about the way forward. The most important thing is that Cooky will make the decision based on what’s right for England cricket, not what’s right for Alastair Cook.”
Cook’s future was a talking point throughout the tour of India following an interview with the Cricketer magazine in which he was quoted as saying: “Deep down I don’t know how much longer I am going to carry on. It could be two months, it could be a year.” Farbrace, however, has played down any suggestions this caused confusion in the ranks.
He added: “There’s no uncertainty within our team. He’s captain, everybody knows where they stand with him – so there’s absolutely no uncertainty whatsoever. The uncertainty is outside of our team. When you lose a series 4-0, of course people will talk about the leadership. We all know that.
“We would all, at the end of this series, be having a think about what we can do better, what have we learned from this series and what do we need to do to make this team win. Ultimately, that’s what we’re here for. But there’s nobody looking round the dressing room thinking: ‘Ooh, I wonder who’s in charge?’ It’s very clear who’s in charge, and that hasn’t changed.
“So when Straussy and Cooky sit down and have that chat, if it’s decided that Cooky isn’t the man to lead the team going forward, then there is still plenty of time before the first series in the summer [against South Africa in July].”
