Joe Root Backs England Head Coach Chris Silverwood To Continue In The Role Post Ashes

England Test captain Joe Root comes out in support of head coach Chris Silverwood after the latter is facing criticism in the backdrop of England’s devastating Ashes campaign in Down Under.

Although England managed to earn a draw in Sydney to avoid the embarrassment of another whitewash, the damage was already caused after they failed to win a single game in their first three fixtures.

The Australians never let England settle right from the start of the first Test in Brisbane where they won by nine wickets inside four days.

They followed their success with a 275-run victory in Adelaide despite some dogged resistance by Jos Buttler to delay the result.

I feel we let Chris Silverwood and the coaches down to a degree: Joe Root

Australia thumped England on the third day of the Boxing Day Test match as they sealed the win by an innings and 14 runs to win the Ashes after leading 3-0.

Silverwood was isolated during the Sydney Test as he was detected as close contact with a family member, who tested positive for COVID-19.

Root admitted that the England side’s performance in the current Ashes series has been appalling and has also let down the coaching unit.

Root was asked if he would like Silverwood to remain in place for the tour of the Caribbean in March.

“Yes, I would. It was a difficult week for the group of players with him not being around and it must have been very difficult for him,” Root mentioned in a press conference.

“The performances we put in during the first three games, I feel we let him and the coaches down to a degree. We’ve not played anywhere near the level we’re capable of. It’s a chance to do that this week,” he added.

Chris Silverwood has the respect of the guys: Joe Root

England have had a very tight schedule throughout the 2021 as they played a total of 15 Test matches, the most by any international side.

Some England players like Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow and Mark Wood have been playing cricket for a quite long time as they came to Australia from the T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

Root said that playing in the biosecure bubble environment has been difficult for the players and that is a reason they couldn’t field their best team in order to manage the workload.

“I think he’s very calm, he has the respect of the guys and he’s got a desperation to see everyone do well or up-skill the players as best he can. I think he’s had a very difficult time of it with the environments we’ve been living in, trying to manage winning matches with bubble environments away from home, and multi-format players trying to prepare for an Ashes and a World Cup. It’s very difficult,” Root stated.

“For a long time we’ve not been able to put our best teams out because we’ve been constantly trying to make sure from a mental wellbeing point of view everyone is looked after properly, because of the schedule we’ve dealt with over two years,” he added.

England will play the final Ashes Test against Australia at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart, the match begins on January 14.

Also Read: Ashes 2021-22: Certainly Can Pick Ben Stokes Just As A Batter, Absolutely, And Similarly With Jonny Bairstow – Joe Root