ALASTAIR COOK admits it will take time to adjust to playing Test matches without the burden of captaincy, while watching successor Joe Root continue his legacy.
The opening batsman, 32, stood down in February after losing 4-0 in India, having already made his mark as England’s most successful skipper, with 24 wins and 13 draws in 59 tests.
Since then he has taken himself away from the setup and focused on playing for his county Essex – but made it clear he wanted to add to the 11,057 test runs already under his belt.
That is of course the most by any Englishman and over 2,000 ahead of the next best Graham Gooch.
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But ahead of meeting up for the first time this summer this week for some fitness work, he revealed it would be a strange feeling when he sees successor Joe Root go about his business, but one which is negated by the chance to focus on his batting.
He told SunSport: “Without the captaincy, you can really clear your mind and just be about letting the shackles off and scoring runs – not selection or policy which was all-consuming.
“The first week in July will be different for both of us – while it will be a special moment for him to captain his first rest at Lord’s, mine will be a bit of a surreal one.
“A different kind of relationship will form with Rooty and the boys, and naturally it will take time to work out the boundaries – but I know I will quickly get used to the new regime.”
Root told SunSport last week it would be “silly” to not use Cook’s expertise, particularly in the early days – and while Cook is happy to help out when needed, he feels it will take time for both men to settled in.
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Speaking at the launch of a cricket-inspired escape room in London designed by Foster’s, Cook added: ““I've spoken to Rooty a couple of times, but nothing too serious yet.
“Things like this just take a little bit of time to understand, then probably there will be moments where we don't quite get it right both of us.
“The good thing is there are not too many egos floating round the team, so Rooty and I will just crack on and try and get the best out of what is a fantastic team.
“But I'm sure there'll be circumstances where he'll want more or less from me and we'll just have to work through that.”
A question Cook is tired of being asked since he relinquished the captaincy is whether he will hang up his bat for good, having been in fine form for Essex this season so far.
And while he knows he is not getting any younger, it could not be further from the truth for both county and country.
He said: “People often think I’ve retired from the game full stop, and even though I’m clearly at the back end of my career, not a bloke who's 22 years old and has got it all in front of them, I’m still scoring runs.
“There are lot of fantastic youngsters and the selectors have options – look at the emergence of Keaton Jennings and Haseeb Hameed in India – which adds competition to the top of the order, which I relish and can only be good for English cricket.
“Yes, I ain't going to play another 140 test matches, that's a pretty clear thing - but I’m determined to enjoy it and to score as many runs as I can. There’s a lot more in me yet.”
The Melbourne 1888 Challenge, presented by Foster’s is open on for a strictly limited time on 24th & 25thMay 2017. For tickets, head to @FostersUK.
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