Alastair Cook says Sharma and India were baffled by positive England, ‘All at sea’
Former England captain Alastair Cook Rohit Sharma, the India captain, appeared to have no idea how to counteract England’s positive play during the first Test. As a result, Cook believes the players “didn’t really know where to turn or who to look at” and were “all at sea” as they fell to a stunning 28-run defeat.
Cook said, “They found themselves with a free shot at the end of day two, where they were in a position where you don’t win too many games of cricket. It almost freed them up and allowed them to play.
“I said before the series that it would be very interesting to see how India copes with the willingness to attack spin that the England batsmen will show. We knew it was going to happen, and it is confrontational as a captain because there’s not much you can do.
He added, “Halfway through day three, they weren’t sure where to turn or what to do. That’s what England’s Bazball approach can do. What we saw—and whether that was because Virat Kohli wasn’t there—was that, with a bit of inexperience in their middle order and in the field, they didn’t really know where to turn to or who to look at. Either for how do we chase in that fourth inning or for how are we going to stop this England onslaught? They did look a little bit all at sea.”