England captain Alastair Cook has said that he is determined to keep his team in check and not get carried away until he has achieved success in the third Ashes Test, which can make him one of England's magnificent seven Ashes winning captains.
According to the Mirror, Cook admitted that he was guilty of getting too far ahead of himself as a player in 2009 and watched as former captain Andrew Strauss failed to keep a lid on the players' excitement before they lost at Headingley.
Although the skipper believed that his team has earned the right to get into their current position, he said that it is important for them not to get carried away by the exhilaration and the excitement of their two Test wins, even though it is a great opportunity for the team.
Stating that he had started thinking too far ahead at Headingley in 2009, Cook admitted that he remembered that they had the mentality of 'if we win here we win the Ashes' and had forgotten about the hard work, due to which they were suddenly bowled out for 150.
However, the report said that Cook has learned plenty from his 94 Tests including the feeling of being beaten game after game for five consecutive matches in 2006/07, saying that it is a memory that still hurts and has fresh scars.
But, Cook said that those times were a part of his learning experience as a player, adding that they will not be looking back and will focus on the match at present.
According to the report, star batsman Kevin Pietersen is one of only four players in the team to have shared the torment of 2006/07 with Cook, but he is set to play his part in keeping England on top after appearing to come through a fitness test at Old Trafford
Meanwhile, Cook admitted that he would be guided by Pietersen himself on the morning of the game as to whether he played or not, although he added that James Taylor has been retained in Manchester just in case
In a veiled taunt to their rival, Cook said that England is not reliant on their most attacking player for success despite Pietersen's ability to destroy an attack, adding that the England squad has developed enough that the other players in the squad like Ian Bell, Joe Root, Jonathan Trott and the like have also produced some good cricket as well.
