Cook 'shocked' by Taylor retirement

England captain pays tribute to former Notts batsman

Alastair Cook paid tribute to James Taylor (AP)

England Test captain Alastair Cook says the retirement of team-mate James Taylor came as a “huge shock”.

The England and Nottinghamshire batsman Taylor announced on Tuesday that he has been forced to give up the game because of a serious heart condition. The 26-year-old returned to the Test side for the first time in three years in October, a move that was welcomed at the time by Cook.

“He proved people wrong time and time again and was a great character to have around the dressing room,” Cook told BBC Radio Essex. “It's a career cut very short but, on the flip side, at least it's been detected and we're not talking about something a lot worse.”

Taylor has been diagnosed with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC), a condition similar to the one which affected footballer Fabrice Muamba, and needs an operation. He played seven Tests and 27 one-day internationals, having started his career with Leicestershire.

“When I found out on Monday night it was a huge shock, and a realisation of how lucky we are that we are able to play this great game. If there's a guy that can handle what he's going through, it's him because of his character. Hopefully the operation can go well and we'll see him around, and adding his talent to the English game in a different way.”