Alastair Cook insisted he’d no intention of resigning the England captaincy following the team’s nailbiting loss to Sri Lanka in the second Test at Headingley on Tuesday.
England were on the brink of a remarkable draw when last man James Anderson fell to the penultimate ball of the match to give the tourists victory by exactly 100 runs, with Moeen Ali unbeaten on 108 — his maiden Test century.
The result meant Sri Lanka, who themselves clung on by one wicket in the drawn first Test at Lord’s, had won a Test series of more than one match on English soil for the first time.
Cook, who presided over a 5-0 Ashes series whitewash loss in Australia, has now gone 24 innings since scoring the last of his England record 25 Test hundreds.
And his tactics came in for severe criticism on Monday as Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews, who made a Test-best 160, led the tourists into a strong position that left England needing an improbable 350 to win.
“It’s a huge honour to captain England and I’m in it for the long haul, as long as I can be, because I believe I’m the right man for the job,” Cook told Sky Sports.
“I know I have got to score runs, no one has got a divine right to play in the side or captain the side.
“I know I have got to work bloody hard on my game. It’s a huge honour to captain England and I believe I am the right man for the job.
“I am a determined bloke and I am determined to turn this around,” the 29-year-old left-handed opener added.
“If someone else decides that not the case then so be it, but I’ve got to give all blood, sweat and tears into the England captaincy.
“I never quit on anything.”
England collapsed to 57 for five at stumps on Monday to complete a miserable day for Cook and England
“Yesterday was one of the tougher days I have had, you have to look yourself and what you could have done differently,” Cook admitted.
“We needed people to be brave for six and-a half-hours today (Tuesday) and we did it for six hours 29 minutes.”
Cook added: “Moeen played an outstanding innings. To get a hundred like that was a great effort.
“It’s gutting to come up short but credit to Sri Lanka.
“The series was very close and they’ve won the crucial moments.”
England’s James Anderson reacts duringan interview after defeat on the fifth day of the second Test cricket match ©AFP
