Alastair Cook admits criticism of England captaincy normal after India series defeat
Friday 16 December 2016 05:59, UK
Alastair Cook admits he has to accept criticism of his captaincy following England's series defeat in India, saying it's "part and parcel of the job".
England are 3-0 down in the five-Test series, with the finale beginning in Chennai on Friday.
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Joe Root is widely regarded as Cook's most likely successor when the opener either steps down or is stripped of the captaincy.
Speculation about his position has been relentless for much of the India tour, and his future is expected to be resolved in the new year following his campaign debrief with England and Wales Cricket Board director Andrew Strauss.
"When you lose games of cricket you are under fire - it happens to everyone. When Virat (Kohli) loses games of cricket he'll get criticised, when I lose games of cricket I get criticised. That's part and parcel of the job," Cook said.
"When you're part of the leadership group you live and die by decisions. When it's going well everybody thinks you're brilliant, and when you're doing badly everybody thinks you're terrible.
"You're probably somewhere in the middle most of the time."
The 31-year-old added: "Look at Dylan Hartley the England rugby captain. He wins games of rugby and it's all flying and obviously an incident last week (when he struck an opponent on the back of the head) he gets criticised."
Cook, who has said that Root is "ready" for the captain's job, was again asked about his likely successor.
"The moment he got off the plane in India in 2012 as a very young-looking Joe Root you knew he was ready for international cricket - you knew," he said.
"Everything you knew - his mind, his game - was ready. Every challenge that's been thrown at him he's handled. So I don't think anything over the next few years will faze him.
Root's credentials to take over from Cook have also been backed by India skipper Virat Kohli.
"Joe looks like a guy who has the temperament to do it," Kohli said.
"Of what I have seen of him as a player and the way he conducts himself on the field, I think he has been a great batsman for England and I think he's equipped enough to handle that job."
Kohli himself has flourished since taking over the Test captaincy but warned it was a highly demanding job.
"It depends on the individual, to be honest. Joe is an outstanding player. I've been very fond of his game and the way he plays and goes about things," Kohli said of the 25-year-old.
"He's very positive, always thinks of any situation as an opportunity. It's pretty evident with the way he plays.
"I don't know what captaincy would do to that. Captaincy is not just about handling 10 more guys on the field or having a squad and interacting with management. It comes with a whole package..."
