Cook ready
to boil - Next Cricket Test Edgbaston - Cook 4/1 Top
Batsman at Skybet
Left-hander will not relax until
No.1 ranking is assured,By Joe Drabble.
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England opening batsman Alastair
Cook is confident he and his team-mates can put the
series beyond doubt with a third successive win over
India at Edgbaston.
"We won't look at their side
too much but we do know that quality players are coming
back and we do need to be on top of our game."
The home side lead the four-match
series 2-0 thanks to emphatic victories at Lord's and
Trent Bridge, however India welcome back high-profile
opening batsmen Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir for
the third Test.
Strike bowler Zaheer Khan is also
expected to return to the side after a hamstring injury,
but spinners Yuvraj and Harbhajan Singhwill miss out
through injury.
Despite the speculation on what
India's starting XI will actually be in Birmingham, Cook
acknowledges that England must be at their best if they
are to open up an unassailable 3-0 lead.
He told Sky Sports News HD: "We
won't look at their side too much but we do know that
quality players are coming back and we do need to be on
top of our game, like we have been and hopefully someone
from our side can put in a match-winning
performance."
Another victory would see England
claim the No.1 Test ranking from the Indians as Andrew
Strauss' men continue their rich vein of form in the
five-day game.
Asked if that status meant a lot to
the players, Cook said: "It does, but we're not
there yet. There's a long way to go before we are.
"We might be at the end of the
series, we don't know, but Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower
are very keen that we don't look too far ahead.
"You come and watch our
training on Monday and it will be of a very high
intensity."
Cook, who claimed the
man-of-the-series accolade after scoring 766 runs in the
victorious Ashes series in the winter, has struggled for
runs of late.
The 26-year-old left-hander has
posted scores of 12, one, two and five so far against
India, but remains hopeful that a big contribution is
just around the corner.
"It hasn't been the best couple
of games for me personally and I think that's your lot as
an opening batsman sometimes," he added.
"As an opening batter you can
make a couple of mistakes and you pay the full price.
I've just got to make sure my method in training and my
practice is in place and I'm sure the runs will take care
of themself."
England v India - 3rd Test England
Most Runs 1st Inns: Alastair Cook 4/1
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