Cook: Kieswetter is sure of top order spot (From Echo)

Cook: Kieswetter is sure of top order spot

10:40am Thursday 25th February 2010 in

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ENGLAND captain Alastair Cook accepts that Craig Kieswetter is a virtual certainty to make his one-day international debut against Bangladesh on Sunday, but believes future selection meetings could throw up more difficult questions.

South Africa-born Kieswetter has been England qualified for just a week but has already made a big impression on the team with his nerveless attacking style at the top of the innings.

Having already barged his way in to the touring party with some dominant displays for the Lions in Abu Dhabi, he went one step further on Tuesday by cracking a boundary-strewn 143 against a BCB XI in Fatullah on his first innings with the senior squad.

He had plenty of good fortune along the way, with the hosts allowing him three lives before his century and at least two afterwards, but his fierce return of six sixes and 14 fours counted heavily in his favour.

So much so that while the final XI has yet been finalised for the first ODI in Dhaka at the weekend, Cook cannot conceive his name being left off the teamsheet.

“He’s got a good chance,” said Essex batsman Cook. “I think he’s given himself a very good chance. He’s made a massive claim.

“It’s also nice to have the left-hand, right-hand partnership. No decisions have been made but I’d be very surprised if he wasn’t there at the top of the order on Sunday.”

As skipper in the absence of the resting Andrew Strauss, Cook is also assured of his place in the limited-overs side in the forthcoming series and will be able to call on some reasonable form having made 56 in a 127-run first-wicket stand with Kieswetter.

But when Strauss returns the puzzle will have at least one extra piece, not to mention the likes of Joe Denly and Jonathan Trott — both initially selected ahead of Kieswetter but no longer in front of him in the pecking order.

The selectors may, therefore, have some tricky calls to make.

But while Cook concedes that is the case, he believes it is a sign of strength for the national side.

“We knew he could play like that from the Lions games but to do so on your first official England game, even though it wasn’t a full international, is fantastic,” said Cook.

“He didn’t look too flustered, took the right options at the right times and played a fantastic knock.

“He’s got a very good chance (of breaking into the first XI), he’s done very well to push his name forward.

“It’s going to make for some tough selection problems down the line, even on this tour, but the ultimate benefit of that is that the England side is improving.

“On every tour we set out to improve from where we are at the start of the tour and people coming in and doing it like he has help us to do that.”