• Home
  • Who Said What
  • If Youre Asking England Great Blames Stokes Mccullum For Roots Poor Run Of Form

'If You're Asking…' - England Great Blames Stokes, McCullum For Root's Poor Run Of Form

image-lsu6kryiJoe Root's struggle with the bat has been evident against IND (AP Photo)

Amidst the ongoing Test series between India and England, Joe Root finds himself facing immense pressure due to a series of low scores. Mark Butcher has identified Root's heavy bowling workload as a contributing factor to his batting struggles in the series.

Regarded as one of England's greatest batters, Root has failed to meet the expectations of his teammates and fans in the current series. Across the first three Test matches, he hasn't managed to accumulate even 100 runs, significantly impacting England's performance.

Root's lackluster form has sparked criticism, with many former England players questioning his approach to Test cricket. However, instead of solely blaming Root, Butcher has indirectly criticized the team management's decision to rely heavily on Root as a bowler.

“If you’re asking your best batter to be a genuine all-rounder and bowl as many overs as your frontline spinners, then don’t be overly surprised if you’re not getting the output from him with the bat that you would like," Mark Butcher was quoted as saying by Wisden.

"I’ve thought that that thinking, going back in time to when people were talking about Joe Root being the lone spinner for England in more seam-friendly conditions and said that that was nonsense. I still think that having him having to do so much work as a frontline spin bowler is not likely to yield the sort of results that you’d expect from him with the bat,"  he added.

With Ben Stokes sidelined from bowling duties, England has leaned on Root's off-spinning abilities. Despite being a key member of the top batting order, Root has been burdened with bowling over 100 overs in the series, a workload he hasn't encountered in previous campaigns.

Root's struggle extends beyond mere lack of runs; it's also evident in the manner of his dismissals. He has faced criticism for playing rash shots despite his lean patch, particularly against high-quality bowlers like Bumrah, who have excelled in the series.

England's "Bazball” approach has backfired dramatically in the last two Tests, especially in the Rajkot Test, resulting in a crushing 434-run defeat. This defeat marks England's largest margin of defeat in terms of runs since 1934 and has left them trailing 1-2 in the series. The fourth Test is scheduled to kickstart in Ranchi from Friday.