Played many games in COVID-19, don't think it was fair on group: Root reflects on captaincy tenure

Leeds [UK], June 18 (ANI): England's batting wizard Joe Root reminisced about his captaincy days and felt it was unfair on the group, a phase that eventually pulled the curtains down on his stint as the Three Lions skipper.

Root's tenure, which lasted from 2017 to 2022, saw England stand triumphant 27 times, endure 26 defeats and register 11 draws in 64 matches, although the end of his tenure was filled with patches of turbulence and a rich vein of form.

In his final 17 Tests as skipper, England had just a solitary victory as the team dealt with the bubbles of the COVID-19 pandemic. Often, priority was given to the white-ball setup. Root's tenure met its bitter end with a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Australia, which was followed by a 1-0 loss against the West Indies.

"I would change Covid. The fact we played as many games as we did in those environments, I don't think, was fair on the group. We were playing to keep the lights on and win games of cricket," Root told Sky Sports.

"But I wouldn't change too much. I am very proud we won in South Africa, twice in Sri Lanka and some big games at home as well. I captained in some of the most exciting games we have seen in a long time. I am very proud of what we achieved in that period," he added.

As of now, Root is fine-tuning his technique before England kicks off a gruelling five-match Test series against India. Since the flamboyant duo of head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes began their era of dominance, England has yet to lose a Test series on their home turf.

After the five Tests against India, England will shift its focus on reclaiming the urn for the first time in a decade against their fierce rival Australia in the Ashes, which will kick off at Perth's Optus Stadium on November 21.

Root feels looking too far ahead invites trouble and said, "I think it's a dangerous thing, a bit like setting goals. You are setting yourself up for disappointment."

"It's the first time we could go to Australia for a while with a barrage of pace [bowling] and test them in a slightly different way to previously. But all the stars have to align, everyone has to stay fit," he added.

India's squad: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana

England squad for first Test vs India: Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Ben Stokes (capt), Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)