Moores believes Cook’s quickly developing into a smart leader

Andy Hampson 06:29 11/08/2014
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  • Back in the hunt: Alastair Cook and England's fortunes have risen with the captain's return to form.

    England coach Peter Moores nev­er doubted the ability of captain Alastair Cook to turn around his and the team’s fortunes.

    Three weeks ago both Cook and England were at a low ebb as they slumped to defeat at Lord’s in the second Test against India – a sev­enth loss in a run of 10 matches without a win.

    Cook’s position as skipper was under heavy scrutiny and the pres­sure was being magnified by his own poor form with the bat.

    The situation has now turned around remarkably after back-to-back victories at the Ageas Bowl and Emirates Old Trafford, with Cook scoring two good half-centu­ries in Southampton.

    Moores had been keen to work with Cook when he took charge at the start of the summer and backed the 29-year-old to defy his critics.

    Moores said: “I think the signifi­cant point was when he came out and said he was in it for the long haul. If people didn’t want him, that was fine, he would move on – but he made pretty public his desire to captain England.

    “He is very determined. The more people have had a go at him, the more he has said he is totally in for it.

    “He is developing quickly as a captain tactically and has great val­ues to lead with from example.

    “He would openly admit that at times he has had a really tough ride but often that can forge somebody into something special. Hopefully for Alastair that is starting to come out a bit.”

    After a dismal past year, England are now heading to the Kia Oval for next week’s final Test with an un­assailable 2-1 lead and with spirits soaring after a dramatic win inside three days in Manchester.

    Describing the turnaround of the last two matches, Moores said: “We played some good cricket at times but didn’t put it together for any length of time. We have now played pretty consistently all the way through the last Test and pretty much all the way through this one.

    That has resulted in two wins and we have had two or three excep­tional performances within that.

    “Certain things have fallen into place. We had seen a lot of the younger players do well and the senior players hadn’t really fired, but the fact that the senior players have really performed well over the last couple of games has really add­ed something to us.

    “At the end of the Lord’s game, that was a real low point. We were all very disappointed – but that al­lows you to regroup.

    “We have won two Tests but we have got to be pretty careful we don’t get carried away. We have got a huge game coming up at The Oval. It is nice to see something coming into place for a team that is going to build for the future.”

    England have named an un­changed squad for the fifth Test with the only major issue being the fitness of Broad.

    Broad fractured his nose after be­ing hit by an 88mph bouncer from India’s Varun Aaron and went to hospital during the second innings.

    The 28-year-old, who is to un­dergo knee surgery at the end of the series, is confident of returning to action but revealed via Twitter yes­terday he may need to wear a mask.

    Broad, who attached a picture showing his bloodied and stitched nose, wrote: “Little bit sore this morning but not too bad! Doc did a great job with the stitches. On to The Oval! (With a mask).”

    Steven Finn and Ben Stokes are the potential replacements in the squad should Broad not be risked.

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