Alastair 'Bed and Breakfast' Cook back in three-figure scores with darts win over Jimmy 'The Swinger' Anderson

Cook was sacked as England one-day captain on Friday but was able to celebrate somewhat as he beat Anderson in a one-leg shootout

Alastair Cook at the Darts on Monday night (GETTY IMAGES)

Alastair Cook put his "gutting" World Cup disappointment to one side as he swapped willow for tungsten on Monday night.

Two days after being told he was being dropped not only as England's one-day captain but from the World Cup squad entirely, the stage of a boozed-up Alexandra Palace may have been one of the last places Cook wanted to be.

But he smiled his way through a one-leg shoot-out with Test team-mate Jimmy Anderson - winning with a double-11 checkout after contributions of 100 and 140 - in a warm-up to the night's action at the World Darts Championship.

Dubbed as 'Bed and Breakfast' and walking out to 'Baby Give It Up', Cook looked in high spirits on stage and was later getting into the swing of things in amongst the fans.

The pair then headed into the commentary box to do a stint alongside former world champion Eric Bristow, and Cook admitted he was struggling to take in what the last 48 hours had served him.

"It's been an interesting couple of days," he said on Sky Sports Darts.

"I'm frustrated and disappointed not to be joining Jimmy on the plane. Sometimes these things happen; I take it on the chin and get a couple of weeks away.

"It's gutting and frustrating, but that's the way of the world and you have to get over it and I wish the guys well."

Cook is now looking forward to spending some time on his farm and then throwing himself into a year which involves Test series against the West Indies, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

"It's hard to talk about it at the moment (the World Cup) because of the way I feel, but there are Tests next year, two real marquee series (against Australia and South Africa) and hopefully I can get back scoring some runs."

Anderson, wearing the nickname 'The Swinger' on his shirt, walked out to Kasabian's Fast Fuse but was more of a slow burner, coming on strong before Cook got the win.

He admitted to having a pre-match beer in order to calm his nerves, while Cook added: "Apparently you need a few beers to play well and I understand why now."

PA