ENGLAND captain Alastair Cook has said there is no batting practice planned for the team’s bonding trip to Spain. A 14-man squad leaves today for a four-day clinic with new coach Trevor Bayliss before the Ashes on July 8.
“We don’t need to constantly train, we don’t lose it in two or three days of not picking up a bat,” said Cook.
“We’re in a unique situation, that 11 days before an Ashes series none of us had met the new coach before, so going away seemed to be the best option.”
Cook highlighted the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s last month as a key moment for his side’s season. England won the match by 124 runs having recovered from 30-4 on the opening morning, with Joe Root and Ben Stokes putting on 161 in 32 overs.
“To me the summer started with that partnership,” said Cook.
“The way they played was very un-English – a counter-attack scoring at six runs an over rather than trying to scrape through – and from that moment on there was a sea change in everyone’s mentality.” (BBC Sport)