Joe Root believes his vast experience will prove crucial in steadying England’s Test team as he steps back into the captaincy, but insists he has no plans to abandon the Bazball blueprint.
The 35-year-old begins his second spell as skipper at Headingley this week in the first of a three-Test series against Pakistan. He assumes leadership following a turbulent spell marked by Ben Stokes’ dramatic retirement and the removal of Brendon McCullum as red-ball head coach.
Root’s initial five-year tenure ended unhappily in 2022 and earned him a reputation for conservative leadership. While bringing him back hinted at a desire to move away from the tactical excesses of Stokes’ reign, he indicated a gentler transition lies ahead.
"I don’t think there’s a huge amount we need to change," he said. "It’s small things that will make a big difference.
"It’s not about ripping it up, I think it’s about keeping a lot of the good stuff we’ve been doing for a period of time, stuff that Ben and Baz built for a long while.
"I don’t believe there is one way of playing Test cricket. You’ve got to be adaptable and play the situation. It’s never the same throughout five days, there’s different challenges and you’ve got to adjust to the ebbs and flows throughout."
Having seen the captaincy become a heavy burden during the closing stages of his first stint, Root insisted he is now fully prepared to embrace the role again.
"The landscape is different," he said. "I’m a different player and person than I was when I (first) took over as captain.
"I’m in a very fortunate, unique position where I’ve got 60-odd games of experience to look back on. There are things I might want to change and do slightly differently.
"I had time to step away, play in a different environment, different coach, different captain, and see the game from a different lens.
"In many ways I feel as ready as any other England captain that’s been before, and to have that amount of experience is invaluable."
Root’s first task will be to get England back to winning ways, with the team having only won two of their last 10 Test matches.
