The Ashes 2013: Captain Cook experiences 'strange feeling' after England retain the urn

Alastair Cook celebrates with fans after England retained the Ashes urn following the draw in the third Ashes Test match at Old Trafford

English captain Alastair Cook admitted to a great, but slightly ‘strange feeling’ after his side managed to retain the Ashes urn in the rain affected third Ashes Test which concluded in a draw at Old Trafford on Monday.

The home side went into the game riding on their 14-run and 347-run victories in the first two Tests at Trent Bridge and Lord’s respectively.

However, it was an entirely different situation at Old Trafford where a revitalized Australia put the pressure on the hosts with a massive 527/7 courtesy of skipper Michael Clarke‘s 187 in 314 deliveries in the visitors’ first innings.

England fought back with a well compiled 368, of which 113 runs came off Kevin Pietersen‘s blade before Australia put up 172/7 in their second innings.

Set a competitive target of 332 to be achieved in the final day of the third Ashes Test, England’s top three batsmen collapsed after putting up just 37 runs on the board before the match was called off due to rain, which ensured an unassailable lead for the hosts in the series.

According to NDTV, after the victory, the English skipper was quoted as saying, “It’s obviously a great feeling if a slightly strange feeling today. We were behind the eight ball for quite a lot of this game, but we fought hard today and had a little bit of luck with the weather.

“It’s certainly nice to retain the Ashes.

“I think it’s been a really good series. At Lord’s we played really well. Trent Bridge was a nail biting game, and we were glad to get on the right side of that result,” he added.

After Australia’s disappointing first two games against England, the visitors managed to sort themselves out with regards to their batting. However, in spite of big scores from their skipper along with Chris Rogers and Steve Smith, Darren Lehmann’s men could not secure a win.

Aussie skipper Michael Clarke said, “I don’t want to take anything away from England, they played good cricket and deserved to be 2-0 up.

“That’s the price you pay if you go 2-0 down in England, there’s always a chance of a bit of rain and we’ve paid the price.

“But I’m proud of the way we’ve fought in this Test match.”

When asked about his well-crafted century and winning the Man of the Match award, Clarke remarked, “I’d rather make a duck and have won the Test match.”

A confident Australia will now face England in the fourth Ashes Test commencing on Friday at Chester-le-Street, Durham, which will be hosting its first ever Ashes Test match.