#Letakan iklan disini
Cricket Aug 31, 2026

Joe Root: England Test captain says he will not rip up Bazball blueprint but his leadership will be 'different'

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Joe Root: England Test captain says he will not rip up Bazball blueprint but his leadership will be 'different'

England captain Joe Root says he does not want to "completely rip everything up" from the Bazball era after becoming Test captain for the second time in his career.

The 35-year-old Yorkshireman has been reappointed as Test skipper following the retirement of Ben Stokes and the arrival of new coach Stephen Fleming.

Root led England between 2017 and 2022, captaining them a record 65 times. He left his position after managing just one victory in his final 17 matches, as well as a 4-0 defeat in The Ashes.

England's style became much more attacking under McCullum and Stokes, but it had taken somewhat of a sour turn before the former was sacked and Stokes left. However, Root says he will not run away from 'Bazball'.

Speaking to the , Root said: "Since 2022 we've done some amazing things.

"We'll try to continue a lot of the good stuff we did over that period and not finding ourselves back to where we were before Baz [Brendon McCullum] and Ben [Stokes] took over, and evolving and tweaking things to where we want to be and really competing against the top nations consistently."

Root's appointment raised some eyebrows given the nature of his previous departure from the captaincy, as well as fans sighting worries over the role affecting his batting.

His average as skipper during his last stint was almost seven runs below an average of 53.34 without the 'armband'.

However, Root believes a lot has changed since he stepped down - including himself.

"[I'm] hugely different, anyone that says in an eight-year period they were the same person they were [at the start] is probably lying," he said.

"Whether it be within the game, away from it, all the experience you have along the way throughout that period you will be shaped into a slightly different person. I think that will be very similar in how I want to take this team forward."

Fleming, former captain of the New Zealand national team, recently left his role as head coach of Indian Premier League franchise Chennai Super Kings to join England's Test team.

Asked about working with Fleming, Root said: "We've spoken briefly and if I'm being brutally honest he was a big reason why I wanted to do it.

"I'm very excited by the way he sees the game, where he sees us sit as a team and the work we have to do to get to where we want to get to.

"All of that got me very excited about taking this role on. Very much looking forward to working with him and he's obviously got a wealth of experience, done some amazing things in the game as a player and as a coach.

"I'm looking forward to the next little while and us trying to build something pretty special together."

Root takes charge for the upcoming three-match series against Pakistan this month.

All times UK and Ireland, all games live on Your Site

Watch the three-Test series between England and Pakistan live on Your Site Cricket from August 19. .

Tags:

cricket news

Share this article

Related Posts

Brydon Carse: Police investigating alleged assault in connection with nightclub incident involving England bowler

Brydon Carse: Police investigating alleged assault in connection with nightclub incident involving England bowler

Derbyshire Police are looking into "allegations of assault" following the incident that saw England bowler Brydon Carse handcuffed outside a nightspot...

England vs Pakistan: Nasser Hussain fumes as day three of second Test at Lord's abandoned during sunshine

England vs Pakistan: Nasser Hussain fumes as day three of second Test at Lord's abandoned during sunshine

A seething Nasser Hussain said the umpires' decision to abandon play late on day three of the second Test between England and Pakistan was "a joke".Ju...

Joe Root: Furious England captain 'hacked off' after Brydon Carse incident overshadows Pakistan victory

Joe Root: Furious England captain 'hacked off' after Brydon Carse incident overshadows Pakistan victory

A furious Joe Root vowed England would earn back the trust of the nation after his return as Test captain was overshadowed by the latest off-field inc...

Sarah Taylor: England fielding coach says role has been 'strange' but 'amazing' and enjoying working with Jamie Smith

Sarah Taylor: England fielding coach says role has been 'strange' but 'amazing' and enjoying working with Jamie Smith

Sarah Taylor says her landmark role as England men's fielding coach has been "strange" but "amazing" and that she is loving working with wicketkeeper...

Rothesay County Championship round-up: Durham take just six balls on Sunday to beat Gloucestershire

Rothesay County Championship round-up: Durham take just six balls on Sunday to beat Gloucestershire

Durham needed just six balls on Sunday morning to complete a 10-wicket victory over Gloucestershire, promoting Matthew Potts from No 11 to open the ch...

What has gone wrong for Pakistan cricket? Woes assessed after defeat to England in first Test at Headingley

What has gone wrong for Pakistan cricket? Woes assessed after defeat to England in first Test at Headingley

It must be hard being a Pakistan cricket fan right now.Those supporters have seen the side suffer 14 defeats in their last 19 Tests after last week's...