Alastair Cook: “The people who are saying that have had no contact time with me”

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England opener Alastair Cook has played down speculation that his international career is coming to an end.

Cook will become the first player to feature in 150 Tests for England in the third Ashes Test against Australia in Perth. But despite the milestone, the 32-year-old insisted that he still has a desire to represent his country in the longest format.

“The people who are saying that have had no contact time with me,” Cook was quoted as saying by Sky Sports. “They wouldn’t know the extra nets I’ve been doing behind closed doors. I was with [batting consultant] Gary (Palmer) for an hour and a half yesterday morning, desperately trying to keep working at my game. That’s probably not a guy who has given in.

“It is a very special thing to pull on that hat. It’s a special thing to walk out and play for England. And that’s why I love doing it.”

Even though he has gone through the highs and lows that every cricketer faces in their careers, Cook admitted that coming out to bat doesn’t get any easier.

“It doesn’t get any easier. It doesn’t matter how many games or what you’ve done before, you still go out on 0 every time you bat,” he said. “Whether you’re playing your first game or your 150th game. It doesn’t get any easier.

“But that’s why it’s called Test cricket. It’s meant to be hard. It is a real test. I’m not saying I’m absolutely flying here, because you only fly when you’re really scoring runs.

“It’s about the result at the end of the day, and the first couple of Test matches I haven’t done that. So I’ve got to do that.”

When asked what the future holds for him, Cook said: “No, I don’t do that. At the moment, I’m very much on a game-by-game thing, trying to score runs, trying to set up England wins.”