Jimmy Anderson has cast doubt on whether Alastair Cook will carry on long enough to become the leading run scorer in Test history.
Cook stepped down as England Test captain this week and a successor, likely to be Joe Root, will be named before the limited-overs squad depart on February 22 for a tour of West Indies.
Cook, 32, believes he can continue as an opening batsman for many years yet. He has 11,057 Test runs, placing him 10th on the all-time list. India great Sachin Tendulkar sits at the top, with 15,921 runs.
Anderson has been in the England side for the vast majority of Cook’s career and he revealed: “He is motivated by milestones like that. Overtaking Graham Gooch, who was his mentor for many years, as the leading England Test run scorer was a big thing for him.
“But [to beat Tendulkar’s record might take] five more years. Mentally, that is still a long time. I think he is fit enough, so that would not be an issue. Whether he has the drive or not will be the question. He has been in the Test team for more than a decade and was captain from 2012. Has he got the drive to do it for another five years?” Anderson told BBC Radio Five Live.
If Root is named, his vice-captain is likely to be all-rounder Ben Stokes. England managing director Andrew Strauss also plans to speak to other key players in the team, such as Stuart Broad and Anderson himself, to test the water.
England do not play a Test until early July, when they face South Africa at Lord’s, but plans are already being made for a new-look batting line-up.
Haseeb Hameed should return to the top of the order as Cook’s partner, with Keaton Jennings — who made a century on his Test debut — at No3, with Root returning to No4. Cook’s plan is to act as a mentor to the 20-year-old Hameed and Jennings who, although older at 24, has played only two Tests.
“Hopefully I can dedicate a little more time to that as well,” said Cook. “As a captain, you do try to offer as much advice as you can but you do get pulled in different directions. Top-order batting is something we haven’t done well as we would have liked over the last couple of years.
“But we’ve certainly found two very good players there. That is not to be disrespectful to the other guys.”
