'Comfortable' Cook enjoying captaincy

Alastair Cook has admitted that, though he is "never going to be a Mike Brearley tactically", he feels he is the right man to continue as captain of England's Test team.

Cook goes into the Oval Test requiring three more victories to draw level with Michael Vaughan as the most successful England captain (in terms of the number of Tests won) in history. He is also three Tests short of equalling Mike Atherton's record of 54 Tests as England captain.

While his reputation as a leader may never match that of Brearley - whose win percentage of 58.06% as captain is well ahead of any other England player to have led in 20 Tests or more - Cook's team could also be on the verge of a couple of significant milestones. England lead the series against Pakistan 2-1 and, if they avoid defeat in the final Test, they will hold the trophy in all nine bilateral series against Test opposition. And, if they win the Test, they could be rated as the No. 1 Test team in the next few weeks if other results go their way.

But while Cook admitted he will discuss his future with the team management after the Oval Test, he said he is "the most comfortable" he has ever been in the role at present and that, with significant challenges looming for his side in the near future, he would be reluctant to shirk responsibility when his experience may be at its most valuable.

"At the end of every series, I'll sit down with Trevor Bayliss and Andrew Strauss and discuss the future of the side and where we want to go," Cook said. "We'll discuss whether I am still the right captain for this team or if it is time to move on after this series or after India. We always now talk about that for my sanity as well.

"At the moment I'm enjoying it. The dressing room seems to be in a good place. It's the most comfortable I've felt captaining a side.

"The last year or so I've really felt comfortable in the captaincy role and everything it brings with it on and off the field. I am really enjoying it and all those hard moments I've had - obviously they're not gone - but in one sense, it would seem wrong to give it up quite yet."

At the forefront of Cook's mind is the prospect of seven Tests in Asia before Christmas. If England are to have any chance in India, in particular, they will not only need to draw on all the experience Cook possesses but they will need Joe Root (his obvious successor) to score heavily. Adding the burden of captaincy to a man with so little experience in the role and so much already expected of him may well prove overly onerous.

"We've some tough challenges ahead," Cook said. "We've these five days and then seven straight Tests in the sub-continent - 11 weeks away - so I think we're going to need some strong leadership. It's going to be a really tough tour for a lot of people. We've got to be on it as a group."

Cook's reputation as a leader is interesting. While captains are often rated on their on-field tactics -field placing and bowling changes, for example - much of their work takes place away from the cameras. You could argue that Cook's finest moment as captain came ahead of the India tour in 2012. After insisting on the return of Kevin Pietersen to the England team - an impressive feat of diplomacy at the time - he then led from the front with an outstanding display of batting that helped his team to a memorable series victory.

More recently, his recommendation that James Anderson apologise to the umpires and then explain his actions to the media during the Edgbaston Test averted a possible suspension or fine.

And, when we look back on this series against Pakistan, it may be that we reflect on his decision not to enforce the follow-on at Manchester as a defining moment. It was not a popular decision at the time - Cook seems untroubled about courting popularity - but, by batting again, England crushed an already jaded Pakistan side into the dust through exhaustion and disappointment. The signs, so far, are that they have never fully recovered.

If there have been moments when his admirable determination has manifested itself as stubbornness, such as his refusal to accept his continued presence in the ODI side was holding back the team, he has also led England through a period of considerable upheaval - the 2013-14 Ashes thrashing, the Pietersen affair, the departures of Andy Flower, Ashley Giles, Peter Moores and Paul Downton and his over-the-top vilification in the media at the hands of Piers Morgan - to calmer, happier times which feature predictable selections, greater willingness to interact with supporters and some results - not least wining in India and South Africa and defeating Australia in England - which demand respect.

Besides, it could be argued that Brealey's success was, in part, due to his career coinciding with Ian Botham being at his best as an allrounder. Just as Vaughan later relied upon Andrew Flintoff at his peak - and for a couple of years, Flintoff was a terrific cricketer - Brearley, for a while, had both Botham and Tony Greig to balance his side. While he deserved credit for coaxing the best out of Botham, we may one day look back on Cook's period of captaincy and reflect that the emergence of Ben Stokes (and Chris Woakes, among others) helped him take the England team to another level.

Cook is no orator but, while Brearley's record as a leader is unquestioned, it should never be forgotten that his batting average of 22.88 is less than half that of Cook, which currently stands at 47.55. Really, it may be time to give Cook's leadership a little more respect.

Perhaps, if England can reach No. 1 again and claim all nine bilateral Test series trophies, that respect may come. Cook agrees with James Anderson that this side is more naturally talented than the one that last achieved the No. 1 ranking in 2011 and feels that, whatever happens over the next few months, it is a couple of years away from fulfilling its potential.

"It would be a really good achievement by our guys," Cook said. "But I genuinely think it's come a little bit early for us a side. It would be a great achievement and one you can be very proud of when you finish playing cricket.

"But, as I keep saying, there's still questions that need to be answered. We're not at the level we were in 2012. Then everyone had played 30 or 40 Test matches at the very least.

"This is a more talented team. There are people who can turn a game in a session. The team in 2011-12 was a very consistent, hard-nosed team that was very hard to beat. We've got a way to go to that level, but as you saw with some of the brilliance of Ben Stokes, getting a hundred in a session - that kind of stuff is what's very exciting about this team."

Could Cook walk away from that excitement? It seems unlikely. And, as a developing England side search for stability and consistency, that should draw of sigh of relief from their supporters.