Coach Trevor Bayliss expects Alastair Cook to lead England into next winter's Ashes.

Cook, who has captained his country more times than anyone else, recently admitted he did not know how long he would remain in the job, suggesting it could be as little as two months.

But Bayliss thinks the 31-year-old will still be in charge when England head Down Under trying to retain the Urn they won in 2015.

"He's talking about the next Ashes series and being out in Australia," Bayliss told BBC Test Match Special.

"Sometimes there are little comments made along the way and they get blown out of all proportion.

"He's certainly up for the fight. I haven't had any discussion with him any other way and that's what we've been working towards.

"I was as surprised as anyone when I saw that in the papers."

Cook hold the English records for the most Test runs, caps and matches as captain but hinted last month that he may stand down following the current tour of India, saying: “It could be two months, it could be a year.”

Alastair Cook walks off the pitch after being clean-bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin in the third test (Reuters)

England currently trail India 2-0 in the five-Test series, with the four Test starting on Thursday in Mumbai.