England might have routed South Africa in the first Test at Lord’s, but there remained plenty to desire. The hosts were guilty of making some basic mistakes, such as dropping some sitters out in the middle. More than England winning the game, it was South Africa killing themselves with a dismal performance against the newly appointed Joe Root’s side.
In his recent column, former England skipper Nasser Hussain has a word of caution for England’s latest Test captain. Hussain, in his article, mentioned that had England repeated the same mistakes against any other quality Test side, the result could have been far different. Against a depleted South African side though, the mistakes weren’t counted to a great extent.
Read More: (Joe Root says he what challenges await him)
“Root’s leadership was impressive at Lord’s but I’m not sure he ever needed to do anything out of the ordinary because the bowlers were always in the game,” Hussain wrote in his column.
“The real test will come when he’s faced with a flat pitch, with no lateral movement or variable bounce. That’s when a captain earns his corn. ‘There were moments at Lord’s where Root sat in well, but he didn’t need to sit in for long. That test will definitely come this winter in Australia. ‘South Africa are unlikely to stretch England in the same way, but it would be nice if they did. Then we’ll find out more about where this team are heading.”
The former captain added that Root should jump up to three instead of Gary Ballance.
‘Root should go in at No 3, and Ballance at No 5 or No 6. Fast forward to November and England are 10 for one in the first Test of the Ashes. Who do the Australians want coming in next?‘ Root, who can counter-attack and take an innings away from you, or Ballance, a guy who they have done well against before and who is not going to make the fielding captain fear he’ll lose control?