He says he’s still the best man for the job, that he’s more passionate than ever about leading his country. And that England were only beaten by the West Indies because of a bad day. But Joe Root and, it seems, everyone around him, is in denial. He cannot continue after that.
That last comment, the one that has become England’s mantra over the past two days, is the most damning. Can Root, his players and his technical staff really believe that they only lost this series because of the horrible third day of this Final Test on Saturday?
The day their captain was completely out of ideas, energy and imagination on the pitch and their batsmen then rushed to their deaths by not following the simple example set by West Indian Josh da Silva by beating with application and determination?
Joe Root is a decent man and a really great batsman, but he can’t go on as England captain
It was the day the series was there for the taking. When the pressure was on and England had to stand up and seize their moment. The moment they were headed for in the first two attritional Test matches.
And if their culpable failure to seize that moment was the reason they lost, that says a lot about their fate. It was where England is, way down in the world of testing, in the microcosm.
The truth is, it could never get that bad. Not five series of trials without a win. Not just a solitary victory in their last 17 tests. England’s humiliating defeat here on Sunday, with the West Indies completing the formalities by 10 wickets before lunch on day four, is truly a new low, worse even than the ash thrashing that preceded it.
Worse also than the bad old days of the 80s and 90s before central contracts made England much more professional and prosperous, when their unfortunate amateurism and constant change were so often the butt of sports jokes.
The West Indies defeat is truly a new low, worse even than the Ashes beating that preceded it
The issues, of course, run much deeper than the England captain. The ECB is in disarray, with no chairman, a dead man walking for a chief executive, no chief executive for the England team and no head coach. And with bitter divisions within the game over its direction and the undermining of top class cricket by Tom Harrison and his regime.
But Root’s race is on and if those around him don’t realize it, don’t tell this honest man and really great drummer that he should get back in the ranks, then they’re letting him down as badly as they can. they let England down.
“I’m very passionate about bringing this team forward,” Root reiterated after Kraigg Brathwaite deservedly picked up the winning races for the West Indies to kick off a celebratory party in what was a game. truly old-fashioned Caribbean test. ‘I will not hesitate.
“I know it’s a results business, but we don’t feel we are close to reversing it. Those wins don’t seem far away, especially when you remember how we played in those first two games. It was just two bad sessions of bad decision-making that cost us.
Really? England look further than ever and with a summer at home to New Zealand, South Africa and that one-time test against India to end last year’s series coming, things could get worse then. before improving.
Sam Billings has a strong and infectious personality that a new England team could support
Yes, there really is no viable alternative to Root. Ben Stokes is clearly the obvious choice, but would it really be wise to hand the versatile England player all those extra responsibilities, so soon after taking a break from playing to protect his sanity?
The Test captaincy could break Stokes. It could still be Ian Botham and Andrew Flintoff. And, even if offered the job, there’s every chance Stokes will turn it down out of his fierce loyalty to Root had his great friend been kicked out.
I don’t pretend to know the answer, but my choice as captain would be Sam Billings, a man with Kent leadership experience, a keeper-beater good enough to make his Test debut in the Ashes’ last game in Hobart and a strong and contagious personality. that a new England team could fall behind.
He could also come in without weakening the team as Ben Foakes has been one of the biggest disappointments in this series with both gloves and a bat, missing out on his long-awaited opportunity to nail his spot. Foakes’ wild ride on that ill-fated third day was indicative of a scrambled brain and summed up his streak.
Ben Stokes consoles England captain Joe Root after crushing 10-wicket loss
England seem to think they have a better spirit and culture here than in Australia, but that’s either a damning indictment of Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad as personalities within the team or , more likely, an impeachment from a captain who can’t handle them.
What will happen to Anderson and Broad now? Will England return to them cap in hand? Or are they doggedly trying to prove that Andrew Strauss, and by association Root, are right to leave them at home? When Root was asked if he regretted their absence on Sunday, he lamented being without Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson rather than the big two.
Admittedly, Wood’s fall in the first Test had a major impact on England’s bowling strength but, again, Root could be blamed.
Wood did most of his bowling in Australia after the Ashes lost and then needed a painkiller injection in his elbow ahead of this tour. Is it any wonder he was injured and underwent surgery on Sunday which could prevent him from competing in this New Zealand series in June?
Robinson’s lack of ability to play a single Test is a huge concern – a penny for Broad and Anderson’s thoughts on it – while the decision to hand the new ball to Chris Woakes and Craig Overton was one biggest mistakes of the entire series.
West Indies picked up a 10-wicket win over England to win the Test series 1-0
Yes, there have been positives to hold on to. Saqib Mahmood looks like a test pitcher, as he has for the past two years without playing, and has shown great game temperament with the bat. Dan Lawrence shone in the first two Tests but struggled as the ball moved to Granada while Matt Parkinson’s stock rose without him ever playing.
And there was the toughness of Alex Lees, who seemed to be spending an awful lot of time hitting 30 without kicking, and glimpses of Matt Fisher in Barbados to suggest he might have a role to play. future, albeit under English rather than foreign conditions.
But England’s winter of discontent ended with the need to reset the red ball reset. And the question is, who will take the initiative to do this? Strauss insists he will soon hand over to a full-time doctor – Marcus North remains the favorite – and it will then be up to them to appoint a red and white ball coach – Paul Collingwood is in the frame for the latter although he is apparently too close to the players in his interim role here.
Only then, it seems, will Root’s future be on the agenda. Maybe when he returns home to reflect and talk to those around him, he will realize that it would really be better if he jumped before being pushed. “I think I’ve talked enough about this subject to be honest,” he said on Sunday.
So it’s time to stop talking and act.
