Cooke talks pre-season, 2016 ambitions and the Test

Chris Cooke spoke to the BBC about a range of topics concerning both Glamorgan and tomorrow's Test match.

Pre-season has restarted for the Glamorgan squad, with players returning to nets and taking part in a range of fitness tests designed to both test and improve both strength and endurance. Whilst it's not the most glamorous part of being a professional cricketer it is definitely an important aspect. For the first time Chris Cooke has remained in the UK for winter training in Cardiff in preparation for the upcoming season.

It's nice to be back around the squad but the training is pretty intense, but with a good vibe about

The forceful middle order batsman suggested the importance of the fitness work when he spoke about Glamorgan's County Championship campaign last year, that saw the team fall short in the promotion race after good early season form.

If you look back at last season it was a season where we were close but not close enough, we put a really good string of games together but we didn't quite have enough fuel in the tank for the end of the season

In the BBC Sport interview Cooke went on to say how the top priority for Glamorgan this year is promotion to Division 1 and he believes the team have learnt a lot from last year. It's clear the players are keen to build upon and learn from the experiences of last season, so hopefully the boys can improve their standing again in 2016.

Chris also spoke about how he had not started thinking about his own personal goals, stating that they get finalised closer to when the season starts, and he dismissed the essential need to go and play club cricket abroad by referring to how the training and coaching at Glamorgan will hopefully be more beneficial.

I like to think that a whole season with the coaches here at Glam will put me in better stead than a season abroad. In pre-season you don't want to peak too early, you just want to get back into the groove and try and hit the ball in the middle, he added.

Born in Johannesburg, the home of England's next Test game against South Africa, Chris had only praise for the current series before agreeing with the general consensus that these are two teams in different transitions, with England on the rise and South Africa the decline. To read our overview of the third Test click here.

We look forward to seeing Chris in action and hopefully the work being put into pre-season pays off for both him and the rest of the squad.



England return to Cardiff this year for two One-Day Internationals as Glamorgan host the final games of both the Sri Lanka and Pakistan Royal London Series at The SSE SWALEC. Adult tickets are priced from £35, juniors £10, and a family ticket only £80. Click here for tickets and further details.