Joe Root energised to take England forward

Rory Dollard | March 8, 2022

Joe Root believes he has plenty left in the tank as England captain as he looks to lift his side out of the doldrums in the West Indies.

Root has held the job for almost five years since picking up the baton from Alastair Cook and has led the Test side on 61 occasions, more than any of his predecessors.

But after helming a dire Ashes campaign in Australia this winter, with a 4-0 scoreline fairly reflecting the gulf between the rivals, his role was one of many in the spotlight.

Despite a backroom clear-out that accounted for head coach Chris Silverwood, assistant Graham Thorpe and director of cricket Ashley Giles, he was asked to stay on and lead the revival. 

All that remained was for the 31-year-old to decide if he had the drive to recommit to the role.

Holding court on the boundary edge of Antigua’s Sir Vivian Richards Stadium on the eve of the first Test against the West Indies on Monday, he made his conclusions clear.

“I’m very committed, excited and energised to take this team forward. I think I’m the right man for the role,” he said.

“As long as that is the case, I’ll be fully committed to the role. When I was weighing that up it would have been wrong to just commit to a short-term thing.

“I always try and do what I think is best for this group of players, whether that is with the bat in hand or as captain of this team.

“I’m very grateful to get the opportunity and hopefully this can be a real start of change in our performances. 

“It’s a real chance to start getting back to where we need to be, which is one of the leading teams in Test cricket.”

As part of his decision, Root abandoned plans to put his name forward for a lucrative contract in the recent Indian Premier League auction.

Vice-captain Ben Stokes, who was virtually certain of a big-money deal, did likewise.

England’s team selections were criticised in Australia, with their use of Jack Leach’s spin a particular bugbear. 

He played on an unhelpful surface in Brisbane, only to sit out on a turning track in Adelaide.

He looks likely to get the nod this week on the pitch visibly lacking any greenery, but England have kept uncapped Lancashire seamer Saqib Mahmood on hand in case they choose to fall back on an all-seam attack.

Root would be forgiven if he had already started pining for at least one of James Anderson or Stuart Broad, two towering figures who were omitted by Andrew Strauss’ interim selection panel.

While he may have to bide his time, England will be handing out at least one new cap to Durham opener Alex Lees. He is the latest candidate to solve a long-running problem at opener.