James Anderson will not get an opportunity to fire in more barbs at Virat Kohli and the rest of the India batsmen, after the England fast bowler was ruled out of the fifth Test match in Chennai.
Anderson will not be in the playing XI for the Chennai Test as a precaution, with the fast bowler only recently making his comeback from shoulder surgery.
"It is a bit of everything, ankle and shoulder," Cook said. "A bit of bowling soreness. We are trying to look after him."
Anderson played his first Test match since the English summer in the second game of the series against India. England lost that Test in Visakhapatnam by 246 runs, with the visitors also going on to lose matches in Mohali and Mumbai.
The defeat at the Wankhede Stadium meant England lost the series to India and with nothing but pride to play for in Chennai, the away side have, understandably, decided to rest their leading wicket-taker in Test cricket. The decision could also have been made to take Anderson out of the firing line, considering the series has already been wrapped up by India, who lead 3-0.
Anderson stirred up controversy when he played down Kohli's stunning batting efforts in this series, with the India team, R Ashwin in particular, not taking kindly to those words.
Ashwin and Anderson got into a bit of a verbal battle on the final day of the Mumbai Test, with Kohli actually having to intervene to try and calm things down. Cook defended Anderson and his comments in the post-match press conference, but knowing what would have been in store for him in this Test match and the fact that the pacer has only taken four wickets in three matches in the series, the captain seems to have decided that resting him is the right decision.
