Alastair Cook forced his way into the record books in 2006, becoming one of the few England players to score a hundred on debut. By going on to become the only Englishman to hit seven Test centuries before his twenty-third birthday, Alastair found himself in the company of the greatest players in cricketing history. STARTING OUT is Alastair's personal account of this speedy climb to stardom. Equally gifted at music, he opted for cricket as a schoolboy and the young left-hander broke record after record as he progressed to become the first-choice opener for Essex. Now an integral part of the England team with over forty caps, Alastair is perfectly placed to describe the highs and lows of life within the England cricket camp during one of the most exciting and turbulent periods of their history, both on and off the field. Updated to include the full story of the 2009 Ashes series, STARTING OUT amounts to a fascinating insight into life as one of the rising stars of English cricket.

Get to know England legend Alastair Cook in his fascinating and remarkably honest autobiography THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER & TELEGRAPH BOOKS OF THE YEAR 'He is England's greatest ever batsman . . . a hugely enjoyable book' Daily Mail, SPORTS BOOKS OF THE YEAR _________ Watch. The. Ball. It's just you. Standing at the crease. Waiting. The bowler is running. His arm swinging. The ball - 155 grams of cork, string and leather - is hurled at you. At 90 mph it travels 22 yards in under half a second. You can barely see it and you've got to be swinging your bat before it's halfway towards you. Because you are in its path . . . Alastair Cook, one of England's most decorated players and highest test run scorer, knows what it is like to be your best under pressure. Yet at 33 he called time on his England career. Come with him as he relives the fraught hours on the pitch, the desperate lows and astonishing highs, the paralysing anxiety that can send the best back home and the extraordinary battle of wills with yourself, the opposing players and even those supposedly on your own side. This is cricket as you've never seen it. The view from the inside . . . LONGLISTED FOR THE TELEGRAPH SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR AUTOBIOGRAPHY AWARD _________ 'Fascinating, timely. Delves into the psychological challenges of the game' Guardian 'Bracingly honest' Times