Joe Root, England Test skipper has said that the upcoming series against West Indies will give his side a chance to prove a point after the dismal Ashes 2021/22 campaign. England suffered a humiliating 0-4 thrashing in Ashes earlier this year.
The humiliating campaign also propelled many major changes in the England squad including the axing of veteran pacers James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
Joe Root Thinks It’s An Opportunity For England To Prove A Point
West Indies and England will lock horns in three Tests, beginning later on Tuesday. Notably, England’s last visit to the Caribbean Islands wasn’t memorable as they suffered a 1-2 defeat in the Test series.
“Joe Root is aware of the same as he sees this series as an opportunity to showcase his side’s true potential. While he called the forthcoming West Indies Tests a big challenge, he believes winning the series away from home would be a huge achievement.
“I think it’s an opportunity for all of us to prove a point. We know that historically it’s not an easy place for England to come and play, winning once in 50-odd years – but that’s a great opportunity for the group.
“To come away from here winning would be a huge achievement, so it’s something that we’re very much looking forward to. It’s a big challenge for us but something that we’re very excited about,” Joe Root was quoted as saying.
“You don’t come into a Test series not wanting to win. I think along with that we have the Cricket West opportunity to learn more about this team, and more about the players within it.
“So that’s a side note, it would be a great advantage to come out of this tour as well as that, but we’re very much committed to winning this series,” he added.
The England skipper further stated that his side will play positive cricket in the series as winning matches is their priority. It must be noted that England are currently placed at the rock bottom of the World Test Championship points table. Hence, the Three Lions must accumulate substantial points in this series to keep their outside chances of qualifying for the WTC final alive.
Joe Root: Four-day Practice Game Was A Positive Step Forward
England is currently bottom of the World Test Championship table, with 10 points from ten games and a win percentage of 9.25 per cent.
“I think it’s really important that we look forward to this series with excitement, and those guys take that opportunity. It’s really important that when opportunities come around in Test cricket you really grab them and I’m fully confident that those guys are in a really good place to go out and do that,” said Root.
“I thought the four-day game was a really positive step forward, our attitude towards it was excellent, the energy and buzz around the field, and the way guys improved throughout the whole game was really good.
“I think we made the most of what was a very docile wicket to be ready for this series. We know we’re going to be judged on how we perform in these three games but we’ve given ourselves the best chance in the opportunities we’ve had to prepare,” he added.
On the much-vaunted “red-ball reset”, Joe Root said that he had been happy with the signs from England’s sole warm-up game in Antigua last week, where they amassed 466 for 6 declared and then worked their way through the CWI President’s XI with the ball – albeit the only seamer to take a first-innings wicket, Ollie Robinson, is now out of contention for the first Test.
Predicted Playing XI
West Indies: John Campbell, Kraigg Braithwaite (c), Nkrumah Bonner, Jermaine Blackwood, Shamarh Brooks, Joshua Da Silva (wk), Kyle Mayers, Jason Holder, Kemar Roach, Alzzari Joseph, Veerasammy Permaul
England: Alex Lees, Zak Crawley, Joe Root (c), Daniel Lawrence, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Ben Stokes, Ben Foakes, Chris Woakes, Craig Overton, Mark Wood, Jack Leach