Listless Alastair Cook should resign as England captan, says Boycott

Former England great Geoff Boycott says the “nightmare of Australia is not over” and believes captain Alastair Cook’s poor batting form is a “recipe for resignation”. The home team, chasing 350 to win, were reduced to 57 for five on the penultimate day of the second and final test on Monday as Sri Lanka moved within touching distance of their first series victory in England. [caption id=“attachment_1586225” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Things have been going from bad to worse for England captain Alastair Cook. AFP[/caption] Opening batsman Cook, in charge for the embarrassing 5-0 Ashes whitewash in Australia at the start of the year, was unable to arrest his form slump as he was dismissed for 16 by Sri Lanka’s four-wicket paceman Dhammika Prasad. The left-hander is now without a test century in 24 innings. “The captain is in terrible form,” Boycott told BBC radio. “It’s a recipe for resignation. I don’t know if he will but it is. “We thought the nightmare of Australia was over but it is still here. I don’t know where this side can go.” Boycott, who hit 8,114 runs in 118 tests and once had a brief spell as captain, said England’s inexperienced batsmen were struggling to cope in the absence of Jonathan Trott, through a stress-related condition, and the sacked Kevin Pietersen. “The concern with England’s new-look batting lineup is the captain is not in good nick, we’ve lost Jonathan Trott and we’ve lost Kevin Pietersen,” explained the 73-year-old. “He could resign, Cook. He might if we lose. He’s not happy in the job. Reuters