England head coach Brendon McCullum has expressed his full support for star batter Joe Root, despite Root’s difficulties in the ongoing Test series against India.
Joe Root, the former England captain, has faced criticism for some of his dismissals in the series, including a recent one where he attempted a reverse sweep against Jasprit Bumrah, only to be caught by Yashasvi Jaiswal in the slip cordon.
His impact on the game is still very, very significant- Brendon McCullum on Joe Root
Several former England cricketers have discussed why it is important for Joe Root to stick to his natural game rather than trying to emulate the aggressive “Bazball” style. However, on the BBC’s Test Match Special Podcast, Brendon McCullum expressed his belief that a more positive approach could bring out the best in Root.
“People see a shot like that and go, ‘Joe Root is struggling to deal with this new regime’. His impact on the game is still very, very significant. Imagine if this becomes the norm for Joe as well, with the talent he possesses and the history he’s got,”
“Then what’s the ceiling? Do we want just a normal Joe Root, or do we want an even better Joe Root? How many games are we going to win if that happens,”
In the Test series so far, Joe Root has struggled with the bat, scoring just 77 runs in six innings. Many consider his dismissal on Day 3 as the turning point in the game, as India seemed to be under pressure until then. Root’s wicket triggered an England collapse from which the visitors could not recover.
We’re a better team now than we were 18 months ago- Brendon McCullum
Despite the significant 434-run loss in Rajkot, Brendon McCullum is focused on the bigger picture. He believes that England has made considerable progress with their ultra-aggressive brand of cricket and encourages them to continue entertaining the fans.
Speaking on this McCullum said,
“We’ve still got some progress to make and some things to improve on, but we’re a better team now than we were 18 months ago. We’re obviously not totally screwed down on the method yet. There will be times when we don’t quite get it right because it’s a hard way to play. It’s asking guys to take the game on and sometimes we have to deal with failure,”
Under the leadership of Ben Stokes and coaching of Brendon McCullum, England have lost six out of the 21 Tests they have played so far. The upcoming fourth Test in Ranchi could be considered one of their biggest tests of character yet.
Also Read: https://goworldwide.co.in/aakash-chopra-slams-england-batting-in-3rd-test/