By Sarah Holt BBC Sport in Melbourne

Cooke won three matches on Thursday

Table tennis veteran Alan Cooke celebrated his 40th birthday in style after coming out of retirement for his first Commonwealth Games for England.

The former Olympian is through to the quarter-finals of the singles, starting with an 11-3 11-4 11-8 11-8 win over Sri Lanka's Thilina Piyadasa.

He then beat Nigeria's Kazeem Nasiru 11-6 11-8 9-11 6-11 11-9 11-7.

In between, Cooke and 16-year-old Paul Drinkhall joined forces to reach the last 16 of the doubles.

They enjoyed an 11-6 11-9 11-6 win over India's Shibaji Datta and Subhajit Saha, but Drinkell couldn't match his partner in the singles, losing 11-9 7-11 8-11 3-11 8-11 to Singapore's Yang Zi.

Cooke, who first retired in 1997 and will return to coaching the England team after Melbourne, will play Welshman Adam Robertson in the singles quarter-finals on Friday.

When the tournament is over I will celebrate with my family but until then I'm staying focused Alan Cooke

He was taken into the show court at the Sports and Aquatic Centre after his first match on Thursday, where 2,000 spectators sang him "Happy Birthday".

"It was a strange day and quite hard to stay focused on the competition," said the Chesterfield-based player.

"When I got to the table tennis hall my family were waiting for me there with cards and presents.

"But I've felt more and more comfortable as the tournament has gone on."

Cooke, who represented Great Britain at the Seoul and Barcelona Olympics, told BBC Sport before the competition began that he will retire again after its completion because "my body tells me I can't go on".

"I became a professional at 16 and stopped playing before because I was physically and mentally burnt out," he added.

"The Manchester Games inspired me to get fit again and here I am. But I will retire for good this time."

Table Tennis Guide

Cooke insists the standard of table tennis at the Games is still of a high level even without the Chinese and Korean powerhouses.

"It is a real mixed level here," said the third seed, who believes he has an outside chance of a medal.

"Many of the countries in Melbourne are in the process of developing the sport but there are some world-class players here too.

"Singapore are strong and the men's reigning champion from Nigeria, Segun Toriola, is competing."

Once the tournament is over Cooke is planning on a double celebration for his 40th birthday and his second retirement.