ALASTAIR Cook will lead England into the Ashes battle tomorrow knowing the Australians are out to get him.

The England captain, from Wickham Bishops near Maldon, is looking to skipper his team to a hat-trick of Ashes wins, starting with victory in the first Test which starts at the Gabba in Brisbane tomorrow.

But the Australians have started their mind games already and have labelled Cook, along with England’s star batsman Kevin Pietersen, as their two prized scalps.

Aussie bowler Peter Siddle said: “We’ve always targeted Cook.

“He’s the man that opens up the batting; he’s the captain and he’s the one we want to put the pressure on.”

Pietersen, meanwhile, has been dismissed by Siddle seven times in 12 Test match meetings.

And the seamer senses he may yet end up hastening the 33-year-old’s retirement on the back of a losing Ashes series.

He added: “It’s always a tough contest to play against him, a challenge.

“It’s good fun... I’ve bowled all right against him, the last couple of times.

“We want to keep building that pressure, and try to make it a not very memorable last series for him, if it is his last.”

If England do go on to win the Ashes it would be their fourth in a row – third with Cook as skipper.

That, famously, has not been achieved by England since the late 1800s and the days of WG Grace.