Alastair Cook has played down suggestions that he may step down as England captain after the forthcoming five-match Test series against India.
In an interview with The Cricketer magazine, the 31-year-old hinted that he may relinquish the captaincy, instead focusing on being England's opening batsman.
However, Cook, who is on the verge of breaking Michael Atherton's 54-Test record as England captain, has clarified the situation, claiming that he will discuss his future with England director Andrew Strauss at the end of the series.
"It was just giving quite an honest answer to a question which is quite hard to answer," Cook told reporters in a press conference. "When someone says 'how long do you see yourself captaining for?', you don't really know, do you? I've said we'll take every series as it comes.
"So when someone asks you how long you go on for, I say 'Well, I don't know, it could be two months, which would be the end of this series; it could be six months, the end of the next one; or it could be two years'. That's kind of the answer. Obviously the headline has been made - it was not intentional."
Cook has the highest Test run score that any other England batsman - 10,688 in 135 matches.
Danielle Joynson
