England have lost a great batsman in order to gain a poor captain. It doesnt make sense and the semi-honorific status of the Test captaincy needs to be looked atShall we have a debate about whether Joe Root should carry on as Englands Test captain? OK, Ill start. The answer is, no. Of course not. Time to give up, concentrate on being a brilliant batsman and give someone else a go. The end.Unfortunately a question this clear-cut does present some formal problems when it comes to writing a column. It is necessary at this point to whistle nonchalantly and glance down at the open white spaces below this line, like a man in a crowded lift staring with furious feigned...
Root entered his own Bermuda triangle, once again, after passing 50 before getting out to a fearsome Pat Cummins ballTo receive one stump‑splaying, seam‑fizzing, late‑afternoon miracle ball from Pat Cummins might be considered a misfortune. To get two in five days starts to look like … well, what exactly?Bad luck for Joe Root, certainly, whose misfortune it was to face the opening ball of Cummins’s 15th over on the first day of this Oval Test. It was Cummins who had brought Root to the crease half an hour into the day, luring Joe Denly into a doomed push-drive against the new ball. Related: Jos Buttler rescues England after familiar collapse against Australia Continue reading...
The England Test captain’s tiredness exposes modern cricket’s faultline – a packed schedule is brilliant for fans but brutal for playersThe weather seemed to turn last week, and the conversation with it. All of a sudden it was autumn and, since what it’s like out is one of the few reliable topics of conversation in this country, friends sent despairing messages from Old Trafford complaining about how bitterly cold it was in the stands. The cricket season’s still got another fortnight‑and‑some to run, there’s this last Test at the Oval, and two more rounds of County Championship matches after the current one. They’ll be sweeping great piles of dead leaves from the outfield by the time it finishes on 26...
England need only to look to the example of Steve Smith to see how relinquishing the captaincy can restore batting formThe serious postmortems are on hold since there is barely time to breathe between Test matches. The outsiders have not been playing any red‑ball cricket recently; even so it was a mild surprise that the selectors plucked out the same 13 names for the Test at the Oval, though it is unlikely that the same 11 will take to the field, especially if Ben Stokes is still suffering from a sore shoulder.There will be talk of a headlong pursuit of World Test Championship points. But even without this fresh incentive there will be much to engage us. An Ashes Test...
Rather than being booed, Australia’s leading batsman should be saluted as a brave and decent cricketer for his stirring batting performances against EnglandFor tonight we’ll merry merry be,For tonight we’ll merry merry be, Related: Returning Steve Smith plays down impact of Jofra Archer bouncer Related: There have been 2,358 Tests since 1877 and this was the greatest of them all | Matthew Engel Continue reading...