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[Mister Le Chiffre]

England 3 - India 1
Yeah, he's put him in his place good and proper

What was Root's contribution in those victories? Basically nothing. Heck forum favourite Woakes outperformed him when the series was still alive

[Mister Le Chiffre]

As for all this legend of the game. Cook is an English great but no way near the top of the list of all time great openers. There's two chaps on TMS called Gavaskar and Botcott far superior to Cook. In even in this era Smith was considerably superior

[KettonJake]

As for all this legend of the game. Cook is an English great but no way near the top of the list of all time great openers. There's two chaps on TMS called Gavaskar and Botcott far superior to Cook. In even in this era Smith was considerably superior

Wouldn't call an average of 48 (smith) or 47 (boycott) considerably or far superior to Cooks 45....

[Johnny]

And Cook has scored more test runs opening the batting then anyone else in history... But can't be considered a great?

[edge]

Not sure why they're bothering to carry on at this point. Bairstow bowled driving (again) and Butter's gone out and given it away slogging only reprieved by a no ball the third umpire's having a giraffe. Might as well get on with the game, surely.

A lot happened while I wrote that post. Declare ffs, we're 397 ahead

[Mister Le Chiffre]

Wouldn't call an average of 48 (smith) or 47 (boycott) considerably or far superior to Cooks 45....

Dear fellow do some research before giving such lacklustre responses. Sir Geoffrey played on uncovered pitches not the modern day pancakes. Smith was captain in over 100 of his matches since he was 22 iirc.

[Mister Le Chiffre]

And Cook has scored more test runs opening the batting then anyone else in history... But can't be considered a great?

Lower average than pretty much all the front runners. There's such thing as quantity over quality.

Bradman 'only' has 6996 runs yet he was a darn sight better than all the rest

[SLA]

And Cook has scored more test runs opening the batting then anyone else in history... But can't be considered a great?

Depends what you mean by "great". As a batsman he has well-documented strengths, and he has well-documented weaknesses. He had a golden patch between 2010 and 2012 where he really was outstanding, but outside of that window he's been extremely inconsistent, even by the standards of an opener. He's also had some noticeably poor series whenever he comes up against genuinely quick bowling on quick decks. Statistically he's comparable to the likes of Gooch and Boycott, but its beyond argument that the average standard of bowling he has faced in the past decade has been considerably lower than at almost any previous point in history.

Would he have had as successful a career in the 80s and the 90s, given what we know about his weaknesses against pace? Its a valid question. I think if he and Atherton swapped eras, then Atherton would be retiring as England's leading test run scorer today.

His longevity is simultaneously impressive, but also a result of a) England's increasingly hectic schedule, and b) the limited pressure on his place due to a complete absence of alternative opening options since Strauss retired.

[shadowlight]

Is Ishant Sharma injured or did he get taken out of the attack for running on to the danger areas?  He has only bowled 8 overs so far.

[Mister Le Chiffre]

Is Ishant Sharma injured or did he get taken out of the attack for running on to the danger areas?  He has only bowled 8 overs so far.

Ankle went pop

[Mattsky]

Blimey. Why is this still being debated?
Cook himself knows he isn't one of the most technically gifted batsman - or even opener - in the history of Test cricket.
Yet he has a Test average of over 45 across a 12-year career. That's 291 innings. In which he has missed just one game.
And the very fact that he hasn't relied on natural talent but has grafted harder than anyone else and made the most of what he has makes that average even more remarkable.
He's achieved it facing the world's best bowlers, at their freshest, with the new ball.
He's a record-breaker. The most successful left-handed batsman in Test cricket history being one of them.
Is he a Test great? In my book, hell yes.

[hammersjr]

Blimey. Why is this still being debated?
Cook himself knows he isn't one of the most technically gifted batsman - or even opener - in the history of Test cricket.
Yet he has a Test average of over 45 across a 12-year career. That's 291 innings. In which he has missed just one game.
And the very fact that he hasn't relied on natural talent but has grafted harder than anyone else and made the most of what he has makes that average even more remarkable.
He's achieved it facing the world's best bowlers, at their freshest, with the new ball.
He's a record-breaker. The most successful left-handed batsman in Test cricket history being one of them.
Is he a Test great? In my book, hell yes.

Totally agree with this!

[Seniorplayer]

Is Ishant Sharma injured or did he get taken out of the attack for running on to the danger areas?  He has only bowled 8 overs so far.

Ishant has a sore  ankle  even if he came on he wouldn't be allowed to bowl for a while due to the length of time he's been off.

[SLA]

He's achieved it facing the world's best bowlers

This is the only bit I disagree with. There are very few genuinely good bowlers around nowadays, compared to a few decades ago, and the ones that he did face, tended to get the better of him. See for example his record against Warne and McGrath.

[Mattsky]

Well, you can only play what's put in front of you. 

Having said that, he's played in an era against these guys - not exactly mugs with the ball...

Harbajan Singh
Murali
Johnson
Lee
Gillespie
Siddle
Rabada
Philander
Steyn
Andre Nel
Morkel
Kallis
Ntini
Martin
Southee
Boult