Alec Stewart has dismissed speculation that he is planning to retire and said that he intends to carry on playing for at least another two years. Writing in his column on Cricinfo, Stewart said that he is discussing an extension to his existing contract with Surrey which would take him through to the end of the 2003 season, by which time he will be 40. "Any speculation that I won't be playing any more first-class cricket after the Oval Test is pretty far from the truth." He also gave a broad hint that rumours that he would quit international cricket at the end of the Ashes series were wide of the mark. "You can draw your own conclusions from the fact that I'm not planning to retire from the first-class game," he said. "While I'm still enjoying the game, feeling fit, playing all right, I want to keep playing."

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