Alastair Cook receives special bottle of wine from Alec Stewart for breaking Test record ahead of Bangladesh series

ALEC STEWART has presented Alastair Cook with a special bottle of wine and described him as a “true great” of cricket.

On Thursday Stewart will lose his all-time England record of 133 Test appearances when Cook plays for the 134^th time in the first Test against Bangladesh.

4

Stewart, 53, has held the record since his last Test in 2003.

The former Surrey star – now director of cricket at the county – puts Cook in the same category as the likes of Graham Gooch and Kevin Pietersen as the best batsmen of his era.

4

4

Stewart said: “I’m exceptionally pleased that it is Cooky who has broken my record.

"He has been a phenomenal servant to English cricket and will quite rightly be looked upon as a true great of the game when he calls it a day - which I hope is still a long way away.

Related Stories

LITTLE DID YOU KNOW

I used to beat Littler's grandad at darts all the time - now I face him

WIL BUT NO WAY

Zaha BLOCKED from PL return due to little-known rule but may make shock move

FIVER FLUTTER

This 18-1 pick can spring a shock in the Welsh Grand National

ROO THE DAY

Rooney clinging to job after Lampard's Coventry ruthlessly thrash Plymouth

“To have opened the batting and captained the side in some of the toughest circumstances speaks volumes of the man.

"Well done, Cooky - now go and get 150 caps!”

Stewart is on a family holiday and always knew he wouldn’t be able to congratulate Cook in person in Bangladesh. So he made special plans.

4

E

He explained: “I’ve already given Cooky a bottle of red wine produced in the year he made his England debut as I knew I wouldn’t be in Bangladesh to congratulate him properly.”

Cook’s debut was against India in Nagpur in 2006 when the made the first of his 29 Test centuries, another England record.