At least one figurehead of English cricket enhanced his reputation this week. It is fair to say it might have been the most authoritative one of Joe Root’s Test captaincy.
As the severance of Ian Watmore’s underwhelming chairmanship was being finalised behind closed doors, Root was opening others. His leadership encouraged his players to follow him while he was simultaneously earning the respect of the Australian hierarchy he was vociferously taking on.
Root, 30, had been left bemused by the lack of detail in the initial presentation of Covid-19 protocols by Cricket Australia a week ago and his mood had only mildly improved by Tuesday’s follow-up with the Australian board’s chief executive Nick Hockley.
England Test Captain Joe Root has received much praise for standing firm during Ashes negotiations
Which is why the England captain reacted angrily to premature reports that he had agreed to front the 11-week Ashes tour to Australia.
The situation was at a delicate stage in midweek, and remains so, as referenced by the ECB announcement on Friday that they had provided conditional approval for the five-Test series to take place ‘subject to several critical conditions being met’ before travel.
In an echo of Nasser Hussain’s leadership during the Zimbabwe crisis of the 2003 World Cup, Root showed his team-mates he would stand up for them.
That they were all in it together and the hint he might have gone early with the green light threatened to undermine that.
Certainly not a natural orator when he took over the role in his mid-20s, Root is nevertheless said to have spoken impressively in the video link calls. One seasoned observer reckoned they had never heard him as authoritative.
Only once satisfied that some freedoms for players’ families in Australia would be in the pipeline did Root commit — but with a caveat.
There had been fears about the Covid protocols in Australia and rules for families joining but Root is likely to be able to call upon all of his fit players
Chris Silverwood and his fellow selectors were mulling over whether to pick 17 or 18 players for the full squad
Friday’s brief statement — which was no more than an agreement in principle — reflected that, allowing the England selectors to pick a squad in good faith on Saturday while also leaving the ECB with wriggle room should their Australian counterparts not deliver the softer-edged environment that Root has lobbied for on behalf of his team.
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