Alastair Cook has delivered a stark assessment of the England cricket team's recent performances, particularly their Ashes campaign and broader trajectory under the leadership of captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum. Speaking on TNT Sports during the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the former England captain didn't hold back in his critique, pointing to a "massive disconnect" between the team and county cricket.

Cook suggested that England's struggles in the 2025 Ashes series, where they trail Australia 3-0, have exposed underlying issues in their preparation and selection strategies. He argued that the team's aggressive, often dubbed "Bazball," approach hasn't been consistently supported by solid bowling or thorough preparation within the county system. Cook highlighted that good performances in county cricket are not being rewarded with a place in the Test team. "Because if you are banging out runs or wickets in County cricket, there must be a path into the Test team and I think at the minute there isn't. So that needs to be looked at,” Cook said.

Cook also questioned the value placed on England's 2-2 home draw against India, noting that the same Indian team was later "thumped" by South Africa. He said, “They drew India and then India got thumped by South Africa so that Indian side wasn't a great Indian side either”. In Cook’s view, this suggests that England's perceived progress may have been overstated, leaving them vulnerable against a strong Australian side. Cook stated that the current management has "taken their eye off the ball for the biggest series".

Adding to the criticism, Cook highlighted the lack of preparation, pointing to the fact that England's bowlers appeared "undercooked" in both Perth and Brisbane. He noted the disparity in overs bowled by Australian and English bowlers in first-grade cricket leading up to the Ashes. Cook said the team had opportunities to play a pink-ball game in Canberra to put themselves under pressure but failed to do so. "It's not easy, you are training hard but you can't just go from low-intensity nets thrown into a massive Ashes game. You have to build yourself up," Cook said.

Cook's remarks came amidst further criticism of the MCG pitch after a dramatic opening day of the fourth Ashes Test, where 20 wickets fell. Cook, along with other former players like Michael Vaughan and Stuart Broad, described the pitch as "unfair" and "not a great Test match wicket," suggesting it heavily favored bowlers. Cook said that the bowlers didn't have to work hard for their wickets and it was an unfair contest between bat and ball. "Unless this flattens on days two, three, four - if we get there - that was too heavily weighed in the bowlers' favour," Cook told TNT Sports.