The Roar
The Roar

Advertisement

'End the delusion': Greats call for Joe Root's head after humiliating Windies series defeat

Autoplay in... 6 (Cancel)
Up Next No more videos! Playlist is empty -
Replay
Cancel
Next
28th March, 2022
24
1095 Reads

A trio of former England captains have led calls for Joe Root to resign or be sacked from the top job, after England’s Test fortunes hit a new low with a 10-wicket loss to the West Indies.

England collapsed to be bowled out for 120 in the third Test of the series in Grenada, with Windies captain Kraigg Brathwaite completing a simple chase of 28 by hitting the winning runs.

The 1-0 series defeat continues England’s horror record in the Caribbean, having won just one series there in 54 years.

The defeat means Root has secured just one victory from his last 17 Test in charge, and in the eyes of Nasser Hussain, Michael Atherton and Michael Vaughan, should end his 64-Test, five-year tenure.

Writing in The Times, Atherton called for the England Cricket Board to ‘end the delusion’ and replace the captain, brutally describing Root’s position as ‘untenable’.

“As was obvious to anyone who was in Australia, and should have been obvious to anyone who wasn’t, Root has reached the end of the road as captain,” Atherton wrote.

“A change will not cure all ills — this is a poor team and England are paying the price for the neglect of the first-class game — but there simply comes a time when a captain has nothing new to say, no new methods of motivating his players and a different voice or different style is required.

“He had reached that point at the end of the Ashes and nothing has changed.”

Advertisement

Atherton also slammed the much-criticised decision to omit champion fast bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad for the Ashes tour, saying the call was designed to protect Root’s standing as captain – and failed miserably.

“The decision not to select Broad and Anderson was part of the move to insulate Root’s captaincy, but was fundamentally flawed, meaning that a weaker team than the one for Australia was selected,” Atherton wrote.

Hussain also slammed the move to axe the two bowlers, England’s two most prolific ever with records of 640 and 537 Test wickets respectively.

According to him, the call did nothing but give the West Indies extra motivation to take down their oldest enemy.

“I never understood the decision to leave out Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad. Why would you drop your two greatest bowlers when you are at your lowest ebb?” Hussain wrote in The Daily Mail.

“England have only won once in the Caribbean in the last 54 years but seemed to be saying they did not rate West Indies. It is a mistake they have made in the past, too, and there is nothing West Indies like more than to use that sort of thing as motivation.

Advertisement

“The decision was clearly disrespectful to West Indies and I never believe you should use Test matches just to experiment and try new people for the sake of it, especially when you’re leaving people of the quality of Broad and Anderson at home.”

Hussain was similarly critical of the amiable attitude from England during the series, saying Root’s demeanour simply wasn’t cut out to lead a struggling team.

“Root is a world-class batsman and a very likeable lad but I feel he has never had that instinctive feel for the game as captain,” he wrote.

“Clearly under Joe and [interim coach] Paul Collingwood in the West Indies England tried to create this atmosphere where they were all mates and all in it together. They want to be a likeable team but you need more than that to win Tests.

“The whole point of captaincy, and the aspect of the role I enjoyed the most, was trying to get the most out of people who did things differently. Those who were a little difficult.”

Joe Root shakes hands with Jason Holder.

England captain Joe Root shakes hands with Jason Holder of the West Indies. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Advertisement

Those sentiments were echoed by 2005 Ashes-winning England captain Michael Vaughan, a close friend of Root’s, who wrote in The Telegraph that his soft approach on teammates has led to the team becoming ‘weak and lacking resilience’.

“I am sure he is a nice captain to play for because he is a nice guy but when an England side consistently collapses and flaps under pressure, that is on you as a leader,” Vaughan wrote.

“You should be priding yourself as a captain on how well the team respond in tough situations. That is where captaincy credentials shine through.

“This England side for too long under Joe have been allowed to get away with being weak and lacking resilience. There is a soft centre to this England Test match team. That is something the new coach and director of cricket will have to address first.

“When you have one win in 18 there are only so many times you can trot out excuses about bubbles and the county system. Ultimately, are this team and group of players playing to their potential? Nowhere near.”

A key conundrum for the ECB in replacing Root is the lack of other viable options for the role. With Broad and Anderson now appearing out of favour, the list of established Test-calibre talent in the England team is as low as it has been in many a year. Root’s vice-captain and the most likely alternative, Ben Stokes, has a long rap sheet of off-field indiscretions and would be a bold choice.

Advertisement

However, Hussain believes the board must give Stokes a chance anyway, with the all-rounder appearing back to his best with the ball against the Windies.

“If Joe does not decide to step down himself the decision should be taken out of his hands,” Hussain wrote.

“Then the new coach should sit down with Ben Stokes and ask him where he is off the field mentally and where he is with his game.

“Ben seems to be playing with passion and fire again and if the coach likes what he hears from him then Stokes should get the job.”

England’s next red-ball assignment is a three-Test series against reigning World Test Champions New Zealand on home soil in June.

close