Alistair Cook has described his Essex debut as 'fantastic'.
The Maldon batsman made his first appearance for the county's first-team, facing up against one of the fastest bowlers in the world, Pakistan's Mohammed Sami, on Monday.
Cook was called on Sunday night by head coach Graham Gooch's right-hand man John Childs to tell him he would be included in the squad to face Pakistan's touring side at the County Ground, Chelmsford.
"I slept OK on Sunday night, but when Goochie said I would play on Monday morning I was nervous," said Cook.
The 18-year-old couldn't have made a bigger debut - called in to play against Pakistan, the first-ever game under Essex's new floodlights, and a near capacity crowd at the County Ground.
"The crowd was brilliant, I was fielding down at the public end and they all started chanting my name.
"It was fantastic. To have that support on your debut was great."
Cook came in after acting captain Paul Grayson was bowled by Sami.
Taking his position, he had to deal with the last ball of the Essex innings to be delivered by Sami, whose average delivery is clocked at 90 miles per hour.
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Published Thursday, June 12, 2003
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