Unbelievable decision which I presume Cook supported if not instigated. For somebody whose form has deserted him for 18 months at least, one would have thought that some game time would have been exactly what he needed.
Maybe he didn't want his batting deterioration exposed to diluted 2nd. div. bowling attacks, thereby ensuring his continued stay in the England side until at least the end of the 2015 Ashes series when his career will undoubtably end, particularly with the deployment of the Review System.
Despite his freak couple of successful innings for ECCC at the beginning of the season, I don't think the club will noticeably miss his services. I personally would rather see Browne in the opening spot against Kent than Alastair Cook. As far as ECCC is concerned, Cook has been the epitomy of a nonentity for them.
A cheap shot, to suggest Cook is scared of 2nd division bowlers. He showed what he can do at this level at the start of the season. Why do consider them to be "freaks"? Can't you accept them at face value?
I agree that he benefited from some umpiring decisions but he also suffered from some bad ones...these are part of cricket.
You just have to accept that we will never see much of Cook, although on this occasion I find the decision to rest him nothing short of capricious. As Jason has pointed out, his contract is with the ECB. We may not like it but it is probably the best arrangement for English cricket (whose team are far more likely to win an international competition than their footballing equivalents, where the clubs control everything)
