Debut will be child's play for Kieswetter, says Cook

New captain backs exciting opening partner to foil Bangladesh's spin and vim

(getty images)

England will have a new captain today. Alastair Cook will lead the team for the first time as the formally appointed holder of one of the great offices of state. He will be the 29th man to captain England in a one-day match and when he leads them in the first Test match against Bangladesh next month he will be the 79th.

At the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, one of Dhaka's more salubrious districts, it all starts. He will be in charge of a team still beginning to take shape, its destiny the World Cup next year, part of which will be played in this country at this very stadium. Cook will be returning to the one-day team for the first time since November 2008 and he will form, with the young, exciting talent of Craig Kieswetter, England's 13th different opening partnership since the 2007 World Cup.

The presumption must be that there will be a 14th when Andrew Strauss returns to reclaim his position. The further presumption is that England will win all three of the one-day matches and both the Tests. In their own ways these are both dangerous. Should Cook perform wonders as a batsman in the next few weeks, it will put the cat among the pigeons. Indeed, Cook is most aware that his batting must come first, before the captaincy. It felt yesterday, when he spoke of it, that he had planned it diligently in his mind.

As for Bangladesh, they are capable of beating England, on their day or maybe on any day. If it was the England of last summer they might be tipped to do so. But these tourists have regrouped with some style since. At all times they will remember, however, that they remain the only side in the world not to have been beaten by Bangladesh.

For Cook, this is a time when anybody would feel nervous and excited. "A little bit of both, yeah, I am," he said. "The first warm-up game I was really nervous the night before, the brain was going through fielding positions and I was trying to sleep. Once I got through that game, the next one I felt far more settled."

Doubtless he will find as the time goes on that you can never be comfortable, not really. It is one of those jobs – Prime Minister and manager of the England football side are others – that everybody else can do better and lets you know about it. Cook has already discovered this.

He has led England before, in a Twenty20 match last November in South Africa when Paul Collingwood's back went into spasm on the morning of the game. South Africa scored 241 for 5, put on 170 for the first wicket and England were desperate. In their eagerness to help a colleague thrust into the role, there was advice, wisdom and nonsense from all and sundry. But cricket teams can't be captained by committee.

In common with modern practice – which shows that modernity knows nothing – Cook declined to name his side for today. But in well-judged and otherwise candid views on what lies ahead, he acknowledged that Kieswetter, the 22-year-old South African who has played for Somerset these past four summers, will win his first one-day cap. Kieswetter has impressed all with the power and range of his strokeplay and the quietly certain way he goes about his business. The likelihood is that he will not have the additional burden of keeping wicket today and Matt Prior will continue. But that may not be an open-ended arrangement: Prior, who has never nailed his one-day batting as he ought to have done, will feel the heat not only from the Dhaka temperatures.

It seems that Kieswetter might have gained his place with his exciting 81 for England Lions in a warm-up Twenty20 match against England in the UAE a fortnight ago. According to Cook, "it made everyone stand up and take notice". Since then the hot streak has continued with a rampaging 143 for England in a warm-up here after his late call-up. There remains a degree of discomfort about Kieswetter's place because of his South African upbringing and the feeling that, whatever he says, he is from another country. But he clearly has what it takes to be some player if the cards fall right for him and he plays the correct hands when they do, and he will be worth watching.

His presence means the omission of Jonathan Trott, who scored an unbeaten half-century on his last one-day outing for England. Trott at present symbolises both the contrary nature of international sport and the ability of this England management to take tough decisions.

In South Africa, Trott was the coming man, a tough, hard-nosed, well-prepared Ashes hero. His star has waned dramatically, perhaps suffering from being cast, like Kieswetter, as an outsider, perhaps not being ready for things going wrong as they tend to do in big-time cricket. But since he was integral to England's win in South Africa he can consider himself unfortunate, the victim of circumstance.

"Trotty's a tough character," said Cook. "Very tough. He proved that against Australia. It's nothing personal, but at the moment we just feel this is the way to go."

Bangladesh will aim to beat England by spin and vim. The pitch will be slow but they will come out attacking. Beset by selection issues – the board overruled the panel, it seems – they have England in their sights. But England are well-adjusted enough now to win handsomely.