Former England cricket captain Sir Alastair Cook joins the BBC

Sir Alastair, who announced his retirement in the summer, will make his broadcasting debut for England’s 2019 tour of the West Indies with punditry and reports.

He will join the BBC for the second and third Tests in the West Indies this spring, providing updates and analysis for BBC Radio 5 Live, the BBC Sport website and the Test Match Special podcast.

However because the BBC does not have the rights to ball-by-ball coverage for the West Indies tour, Sir Alastair will not be there for the traditional TMS coverage which follows every second of every match. That service will be provided by talkSPORT.

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Sir Alastair, England's highest Test run-scorer, was knighted in the 2019 New Year’s Honours list in recognition of his outstanding contribution to cricket.

He retired from international cricket with a century in his final Test match against India in September 2018 but will continue to play for his county, Essex, in the summer.

The 2019 season promises to be a big year for cricket. BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra has radio commentary rights to all of England’s home internationals and the cricket World Cup next summer.

The BBC also has exclusive rights to the next three men and women’s Ashes series, both home and away. The 2019 Ashes in England follows the conclusion of the Cricket World Cup.

Test Match Special will broadcast live ball-by-ball commentary of the summer’s tournaments on BBC Radio 5 live Sports Extra, Radio 4 Long Wave and the BBC Sport website.

Sir Alastair Cook said: “I’m really looking forward to joining the BBC in the Caribbean and having Jonathan Agnew as my new teammate. This England Test side played some great cricket in Sri Lanka and it will be fascinating to see how they get on in the West Indies.”

Ben Gallop, Head of BBC Radio and Digital Sport, added: “I’m sure all cricket fans will be as excited as we are to hear Sir Alastair’s expert take on the action in the West Indies. This promises to be a brilliant year of cricket, so it’s great for us to be able to welcome England’s record Test run-scorer and newest cricketing knight to the BBC team for the Caribbean.”