July 22, 2016
London – Alastair Cook led England's comeback against Pakistan in style. After a crushing defeat in the first Test against the visitors at Lord's, England made a spirited fightback scoring 190 runs in one and half sessions of the Manchester Test.
July 22, 2016
London – Alastair Cook led England's comeback against Pakistan in style. After a crushing defeat in the first Test against the visitors at Lord's, England made a spirited fightback scoring 190 runs in one and half sessions of the Manchester Test.
Cook, who was admittedly unnerved by Pakistan's press-up celebrations, let his bat do all the talking, smashing his 29th century. In the process, he equalled batting great Sir Donald Bradman's record. Cook was unfazed by the lethal Pakistan attack comprising Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Rahat Ali and Yasir Shah. Notably the England opener missed the landmark figure in the last Test when he fell short of his century by 19 runs after losing his guard against Amir.
Incidentally, it was again Amir, who castled Cook for 105.
However, today, Cook did not want to let go of the opportunity after settling in beautifully. Despite losing opening partner Alex Hales early, the stylish southpaw partnered with Joe Root to stitch a 185-run stand for the second wicket. The elated left-hander, who is 11th on the list of most centuries scored, jumped high and punched the air before acknowledging the crowd's applause.
Notably, Cook has been on a record-breaking spree.
It started when the left-hander bettered Sachin Tendulkar's record by becoming the youngest Test batsman to reach 10,000 runs. Cook had achieved the feat – aged 31 years, five months and 7 days – during the second Test against Sri Lanka at Chester-le-Street on May 30. Tendulkar was 31 years, 10 months and 20 days old when he scored his 10,000th run in a Test match against Pakistan at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 2005.
The bankable England batsman also broke Sunil Gavaskar's record for the most runs as Test opener. He went past Gavaskar's total of 9,607 runs at Lord's.
The English skipper's form at the top of the batting order will be crucial to the home side's chances against a spirited Pakistani unit, who are fresh from the first Test success.
Courtesy: India Today
