Not since 1890 have England known what it is to enjoy four straight Test series wins against their arch-rivals.

But that is the prospect that lies in wait as, barely two months since wrapping up a 3-0 home series win over Australia, Cook’s squad flew out from Heathrow Airport to Perth for a five-Test tour which begins with a three-day game against Western Australia starting on October 31.

Cook, asked if England might be complacent told reporters at a press conference at Heathrow on Wednesday: “Complacency — that’s not a problem.

“We have a chance to win four Ashes series in a row for the first time since 1890. Everyone is excited by that and is desperate to do that.

“Clearly, top-order runs in Australia are vitally important and we saw last time when we went there how big runs make a massive difference and set the game up,” Cook explained.

“Sometimes in England, 240, 250 can be a good (innings) score with the overhead conditions.

“But the majority of the time in Australia 400 is the bare minimum. In that first innings you want to get into the game. That’s the job of the top order.”

Cook should know.

During England’s 3-1 series win on their last tour of Australia in 2010/11, when all their victories came by an innings, meaning they only batted once, Cook scored a colossal 766 runs at an average of 127.66 with three hundreds and a best of 235 not out.

The 28-year-old left-hander was nothing like as prolific during the recent campaign, with a return of 277 runs at 27.70 with three fifties.

“They (Australia) bowled well and I didn’t execute as well as I could have done,” Cook said.

Reflecting on the series just gone as a whole, Cook said: “If you win 3-0 in an Ashes series it is a great achievement and one we should look back on with fond memories.

“To win 3-0 was pretty good and I would love to do that again.”

And after a packed home programme, which included leading England to the final of the Champions Trophy one-day tournament where they lost to India, Cook insisted he and the other senior members of the squad felt fully refreshed.

“The two months’ break has been great and the lads are raring to go. It’s great to get that buzz at the start of the tour and the lads are ready.”

As for England being billed as favourites (British bookmakers William Hill have England 10/11 for the series with Australia 13/8 and 9/2 the draw) Cook said: “When you have won the last three series, and the last one was only two months ago, it is fair if people say we are favourites.

“This summer was the first time we had gone into an Ashes series as favourites but winning in Australia is no mean feat, that’s the challenge we have got in front of us.”

Another challenge for Cook is to try to ensure all his squad remain in a positive frame of mind even if they are not playing as could well be the case during the Tests for left-armer Monty Panesar, who travels to Australia as back-up spinner to Graeme Swann.

In August, Panesar was sacked by Sussex after being arrested for urinating on a bouncer in Brighton and last month, playing for Essex, he received a suspended England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) ban for an on-field altercation with Worcestershire’s Ross Whiteley.

“Clearly he’d had a tough summer,” Cook said. “But I certainly think he’s on the right path now.”

England found themselves under fire, mainly from Australians, for their style of cricket with wins achieved by grabbing hold of key moments rather than dominating in dashing style throughout a match.

However, the pragmatic Cook said: “To me it’s all about results — 3-0 sounds a lot better than 0-3.”

Postecoglou had been in a three-horse race for the job with former Socceroos coach Graham Arnold and Western Sydney Wanderers manager Tony Popovic after Holger Osieck was sacked earlier this month.

He emerged as a clear favourite on Tuesday when Football Federation Australia (FFA) executives were locked in talks with Victory over the release of the 48-year-old former national youth coach.

“Ange’s appointment as Socceroos coach is a fantastic endorsement for our club, its culture and the standards we strive to set,” Melbourne Victory Chairman Anthony Di Pietro said in a statement.

“We thank Ange and he will certainly always be part of the Melbourne Victory family.”

Victory, who will lose the two-time A-League championship-winning coach midway through a three-year contract, said they were disappointed with the process undertaken by the FFA to secure Postecoglou.

“The circumstances that Ange and the club have been confronted with are complex and compelling no matter what perspective you take,” Di Pietro added.

“That said, we have made it clear to Ange that we will not stand in the way of him accepting the biggest coaching role in this country.

“However, we are disappointed with the process undertaken by the FFA, given the outcomes we tried to secure could never have been achieved within the timeframes offered, which ultimately forced us to accelerate our decision not to stand in Ange’s way.”

Postecoglou was expected to be unveiled as head coach by the FFA later on Wednesday.

(Editing by Peter Rutherford)

Khawaja, the first Muslim to wear the baggy green, told The Sydney Morning Herald he had considered whether it was possible to wear a uniform which did not have the logo of Cricket Australia’s key sponsor the VB brewery.

“I understand what Fawad is doing, and I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it,” Khawaja told the newspaper.

“I thought about it for this Ashes campaign. But I probably haven’t been in the Australian team for long enough to worry about it too much.”

Khawaja, 26, struggled in the Ashes series in England earlier this year and remains on the fringes of the Test team.

Leg spinner Ahmed was exempted from wearing the VB logo in England after he explained that it clashed with his Islamic faith — a move which sparked a row and criticism that he should not accept sponsorship money from companies promoting alcohol.

Khawaja said he had discussed the matter with South African batsman Hashim Amla, who has been exempted from wearing a brewery’s logo, about how he could reconcile with his strongly-held Muslim beliefs.

“He just said to me he doesn’t accept prize money from whoever their alcoholic sponsor is,” Khawaja said.

“I assume if I ever did do it, that’s the path I’d lead. But at the moment it’s all about the cricket for me.”

Pakistan-born Khawaja said Carlton and United Breweries, makers of VB beer, were a “massive sponsor for Cricket Australia so obviously there needs to be some give and take there” and he was willing to forgo some money if need be.

The left-hander signed Tuesday with Sydney Thunder for the next two seasons of the domestic Twenty20 competition, a move which will see him join Test captain Michael Clarke, David Warner and veteran Mike Hussey.

South Africa crawled to 130 for six at the interval, still trailing by 63 runs, as Pakistan continued to dominate a match they have controlled from the opening day at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

AB de Villiers, who scored a then South African record 278 not out against Pakistan on the same ground thee years ago, was attempting to launch a salvage operation as he edged past 50 but the loss of night watchman Dale Steyn and then JP Duminy severely dented his team’s chances of survival.

South Africa needed to launch a major fightback with the bat at the start of the fourth day after resuming on 72-4 but Steyn made just seven runs before being bowled by debutant Zulfiqar Baber and was quickly followed back to the pavilion by Duminy.

Pakistan seamer Junaid Khan trapped Duminy lbw in front of the stumps for a duck and next batsman Faf du Plessis played several nervy shots as he reached eight not out at lunch.

Pakistan set themselves up for victory on Wednesday after a strong batting display saw them reach 442, establishing a daunting lead of 193 after South Africa won the toss and elected to bat but could only manage 249 first up.

South Africa, who went top of the test rankings last year after a series win in England, have not lost in 11 tests since Sri Lanka beat them in Durban in December 2011.

Ozil, who joined Arsenal for a club-record transfer fee of 42.5 million pounds from Real Madrid on transfer deadline day a month ago, opened the scoring after eight minutes and provided the final touch for Oliver Giroud to score the second seven minutes later.

He was also the creative heart of most of Arsenal’s sublime play and his touch, vision and movement were virtually faultless.

Wenger, whose team have now won 10 successive matches including a penalty shootout victory over West Bromwich Albion in the League Cup last week, was delighted after his side brushed aside Napoli in the group match, saying the first-half performance was “the best we have played here for a long time”.

He reserved special praise for Ozil on a night when Arsenal rekindled the class and confidence of their glory days under Wenger nearly a decade ago.

“He had an outstanding first half, he was absolutely amazing,” Wenger said of the German international.

“He was fantastic and it was good he scored his first goal. When it goes on too long before you score, it’s always on your mind, so he got rid of that.

“He had everything fans want to see from a great player: individual skill, team play, finishing, final ball,” he told reporters.

“I loved him when he played for Real Madrid too, I must say; I thought he was great for Madrid and we are just lucky to have got him.

“He enjoys playing football, he enjoys playing with his partners. He has integrated very quickly with the team and it helps that he has come when we are doing well, it makes it easier. Of course he has given everyone at the club a lift and belief, and belief is a part of the success of football.”

NEVER TROUBLED

Arsenal were never seriously troubled by a Napoli side missing the injured Gonzalo Higuain with the Argentine international striker out with a calf strain.

His absence from the match against the club that chased him in the off-season was not the only thing that went in Arsenal’s favour, according to Wenger.

“It was a very enjoyable game tonight. We had great pace, belief and authority in our game, great finishing, great movement.

“The second half was a bit more cautious, and we tried not to make any mistakes rather than score, but in patches when we went forward you could see the third goal was there if we really pushed for it.

“We are in a good position at the top of the group but the two games against Borussia Dortmund will be very hard and could decide things.”

Napoli coach Rafa Benitez, back in London after coaching in the city at Chelsea last season, admitted his side never recovered from conceding the two early goals.

“The first mistake we made led to their first goal and the second mistake led to their second goal so I didn’t like the way we started. We needed to have more pace and more intensity, but at least we did improve in the second half.”

Asked if Napoli were now in a battle for second place in Group F, he replied: “No, we have four games to play. It is not over yet.” (Editing by Clare Fallon)

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger would happily see out the rest of his years at the north London club whose consistent support over nearly 17 years in the post has made him shun plenty of other job offers.

The longest-serving manager in the Premier League by around 14 years, Wenger told a news conference on Friday that majority shareholder Stan Kroenke’s belief that the Frenchman was central to his long-term vision for the club was a big boost.

“I am very honoured to have the support of Stan Kroenke and that he thinks I can help the club. That is a huge confidence vote, that is of course for me something that is very positive,” Wenger said.

Kroenke was full of praise for the 63-year-old manager, whose contract runs out at the end of this season, in an interview with British newspaper The Daily Telegraph published on Friday.

“There’s no one I feel more strongly about and I think he is doing a great job,” Kroenke said.

“We have been very supportive, we have never wavered, we are proud of him, proud of the club, the way the club is run and how it holds itself out to the world.”

With Kroenke backing him so openly, Wenger talking about his love for the club and Arsenal enjoying an excellent start to the season, a new deal seems likely to be a formality.

“The good thing with me, if I have one quality, you don’t need a lot of talks to extend the contract,” Wenger said.

Asked when he would sign a deal, he replied: “I don’t know. When we find time. I don’t think that’s the most important problem at the moment.”

Wenger, whose team are top of the Premier League on goal difference from Tottenham Hotspur with 12 points from five games, put his longevity down to the club’s mentality in an era where trigger-happy owners sack managers just months into a job.

“I’m very grateful to this club because during the 17 years we had ups and downs they have always shown big faith in me and they let me always do the job like I thought it had to be done,” he said.

“If I’m still here today it’s because I got that consistent support from inside the club. I turned many offers down because I rate what I’ve got here and I always thought this club is special on that front.”

‘HERE FOREVER’

The highs include Wenger leading Arsenal to three Premier League titles and four FA Cups, while among the lows have been fan frustration that the trophies have dried up with the last one coming in 2005.

He has also battled criticism at a lack of activity in the transfer market but answered it in style with this month’s deadline-day coup in signing Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid.

If Kroenke gets his way, there could be plenty more action on the Wenger rollercoaster.

“Honestly, I would love to be here forever because that would mean I would be immortal but I am not naive enough to believe that so just what I would like to do as long as I am here is to give the best for this club because I love his club of course,” Wenger said.

“It’s a long time and a short time (in the job), because I don’t know where the 17 years have gone. Our job has a good advantage, you just look forward to the next game, you never look back.”

Arsenal’s next match is a trip to Swansea City on Saturday (1630 GMT) in the Premier League with midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Mathieu Flamini facing fitness tests on thigh and shoulder problems respectively.

Wenger said winger Theo Walcott had come through minor surgery on an abdominal injury but was likely to be out for up to five weeks.

Teenage batsman Dominic Sibley hit 220 not out against Yorkshire on Thursday to become the youngest player to score a double century in the history of England’s County Championship.

His feat, at the age of 18 years and 21 days, also made him the second youngest player to score 200 runs in a first-class game in England, behind only the legendary WG Grace, who achieved the feat aged 18 years and 12 days.

The right-handed batsman batted for nine and a half hours at The Oval, facing 512 balls and recording 21 fours and two sixes. He was making only his third four-day appearance for Surrey.

He enjoyed a partnership of 236 with Hashim Amla, before the South Africa star was dismissed for 151.

Surrey, who have already been relegated from the First Division, ended the third day of the contest on 572-4 in response to Yorkshire’s first-innings total of 434.

Sibley, given permission by his school to miss four days of A-level study to play in the game, admitted his record-breaking day was a dream come true, especially since he was batting with his hero Amla.

“I didn’t have many chances to score this morning because Yorkshire bowled really tight,” Sibley told BBC London 94.9.

“I was so relieved to finally get my hundred but, when I went to 200, it was just unbelievable.

“Speaking with my mum this morning I told her how desperate I was to bat with Hashim Amla before he left Surrey.

“Today I could not have wished for a better partner because with him there I could just play my own game.”

London, Sept 27 (ANI): English cricketer Mervyn Westfield, who was jailed for four months in early 2012 over spot-fixing charges, has described his prison stint as ‘hell’, in an interview for the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PFA).

The former Essex cricketer was reportedly approached by Essex team-mate and Pakistani player Danish Kaneria and asked to concede 12 runs in his first over during a match against Durham in September 2009, for which he was paid 6,000 pounds.

According to the BBC, the PCA wants to show the interview to every young cricketer as part of its education programme.

Stating that he would not wish his prison stint on anyone, Westfield said that at prison, it is literally spelled out what a prisoner can or cannot do, at what time he can eat, go back to his cell, come out for exercise or have a shower, adding that he was further devastated as he could not be by the bedside of his father, who had cancer at that time.

According to Westfield, he felt pressured into taking part in the fix and that he was told by Kaneria’s associates that he was not the only player who has been approached, adding that although he would have liked to play for the England national team, he is aware that it is now impossible given his situation, which has cost him the best job he ever had.

Westfield was also banned from professional cricket for five years and stopped from participating in club cricket in any capacity for three, although the second ban has now been reduced after he agreed to participate in the PCA’s anti-corruption programme, the report added. (ANI)

RANCHI: Chennai Super Kings started their Champions League TWenty20 campaign with a convincing win over Titans at the JSCA International Stadium Complex here Sunday.

Super Kings easily chased down the target of 186, as they reached 187 with seven balls to spare after Mike Hussey and Suresh Raina struck 47 each. Dwayne Bravo struck a quick 38 while Subramanian Badrinath remained unbeaten on 20 off 20 balls to ensure the four-wicket win.

Super Kings, however, suffered a poor start as Murali Vijay was bowled by Roelof van der Merwe in the opening over. Till then the Titans had the momentum courtesy AB de Villiers’ brutal innings of 77 and plenty of wayward bowling that took them to 185 for five in 20 overs.

But if Super Kings bowlers were wayward, Titans were worse. Raina and Hussey got the freedom to open their arms. The flood gates were opened after Rowan Richards, Morne Morkel and Marchant de Lange gave away 13, 24 and 14 respectively off the third, fourth and fifth over.A

It took away the pressure from Super Kings. Raina and Hussey added 89 for the second wicket at over 12 an over before Raina fell to David Wiese in the eighth over.A

Raina’s 47 off 28 balls was studde with two sixes and five fours while Hussey with seven fours and a six in his 26-ball innings.

Brief scores: Titans 185/5 in 20 overs (De Villiers 77, Davids 52; Bravo 2/34). Chennai Super Kings 187/6 in 18.5 overs (Hussey 47, Raina 47, Bravo 38; Richards 3/29). Chennai Super Kings won by four wickets.

More than a partial confirmation has been ascertained regarding Misbah maintaining his captaincy at least for the series against South Africa and, to a certain extent, for the home assignment against Sri Lanka.

According to the Express Tribune, Moin agreed with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) caretaker chairman Najam Sethi that a change of guard is not necessary despite the Test loss in Zimbabwe, although he pointed out the weakness of Misbah, often dubbed as a defensive captain, in marshalling his troops.

The former captain, who led Pakistan in 13 Tests and 34 ODIs, partially agreed to the calls from former cricketers, and advised Misbah to change his captaincy approach, saying that the team needs only consistency and no changes.

However, the report mentioned that Misbah, who regained strength as captain with his remarkable individual performance this year, would not enjoy the same status in the forthcoming home series, with the PCB mulling other options for the role while starting on plans for the 2015 World Cup. (ANI)