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England v India; Third Test: Alastair Cook insists he will not stand down as captain

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Speaking ahead of the third Test against India, Alastair Cook insists he's not considered stepping down

Alastair Cook insists he will not stand down as England captain ahead of the third Test with India at the Ageas Bowl.

Cook goes into Sunday’s first day under increasing pressure, with England without a victory in 10 Tests, and the skipper enduring a barren run with the bat.

The defeat in the second Test at Lord’s leaves England 1-0 down in the five-match series.

Kevin Pietersen, jettisoned by England earlier this year following the disastrous Ashes tour, was the latest big name to call for Cook to stand down.

But Cook insists he is determined to turn results and his own form around and at Saturday’s press conference he dismissed the comments from Pietersen and other former England players who have called for him to resign.

“It would be much nicer if they we saying nice things about me,” he said. “They have been through it themselves. Does it affect me? I’m quite a strong-willed guy who doesn’t take much notice really of the media. I’ve got to concentrate on myself in these next five days and not what people are saying from the commentary box. “

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“I’ve got to stay true to myself and say how good it would be I can come through this as a person, as a player, as a leader.

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“Every guy (in the squad) I have spoken to has (supported me). Unless they are lying to their face….”

Asked if the past week had been the toughest of his England career, Cook said: “It was a tough Test match at Lord’s. A couple of days away have been quite nice. When you are away from the bubble you can’t say it’s that tough, certainly compared with what I experienced in Australia for the whole tour.

“The good news is that in a five-match series you have got time to bounce back. You get judged at the end of the series.

Honour

“I’m desperate to carry on because I love being England captain. It’s a huge honour and when I first took the job I wanted to throw everything into it. Until that time where I don’t feel I can carry on doing it or someone taps me on the shoulder then that’s what I’m going to do.

“It’s been a tough summer. The frustrating thing is that we’ve been getting ourselves in situations where we’ve been ahead of the game but haven’t been able to force the result. So we must be doing a lot of things really well. But in the crucial sessions where we’ve needed to stamp our authority, we haven’t done it.”

I’m quite a strong-willed guy who doesn’t take much notice really of the media. I’ve got to concentrate on myself in these next five days and not what people are saying from the commentary box.
Alastair Cook

Some commentators have suggested the burden of captaincy is affecting his batting.

But Cook said: “At the beginning (of my captaincy) when it was going well everyone said it helped my batting. Now it’s not going so well everyone is saying it’s not helping my batting. I don’t know. It’s incredibly frustrating because first and foremost you are there as a batter.

“You are there to score runs at the top of the order. I’ve done that throughout my career. But in the last year or so I haven’t done that.

“That’s a concern for me because it’s my bread and butter. That’s what I’ve loved doing playing for England, setting up games for England to win. History suggests that when I score runs England have a good chance of winning.

“There is nothing worse than when you don’t score runs and you walk back in feeling like you have let the other 10 guys down because that’s your job, first and foremost.

“I’m putting in the hard yards and sometimes you feel you are not getting the rewards. That’s why it is such a hard game. That’s why it’s called Test cricket. Nothing will give me more satisfaction that if I pull through and score runs because I know how much effort, blood sweat and tears have gone into it.

“The last two or three weeks with my batting – I know it’s just a net and I know it counts for nothing – the ball has been coming out of the middle of the bat. At Lord’s the two mistakes I made I got out. To me, I’m not far away. But everyone will laugh until the results come.”

Watch the third Test between England and India at the Ageas Bowl live on Sky Sports 2 from 10am on Sunday.

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