The Root of all problems
20-Aug-2013
It's been a disappointing Ashes for Joe Root so far. A match-winning 180 at Lord's aside, the England opener hasn't scored more than 30 in any of his other seven innings, and has looked vulnerable facing the seamers, having lost all his wickets against them. Geoffrey Boycott, writing for The Telegraph, explains where Root is going wrong, and how the batsman can overcome this conundrum.
To Root I say one swallow does not make a summer. One big century in the second innings at Lord's, superb as it was, is not convincing us or yourself that you are ready to be an England opener. We all marvel at your concentration, range of shots and maturity for one so young. But somehow the footwork against the new ball is not there. You are staying back to the seamers and there is nothing wrong with that. But when the ball is pitched up you have to get that left foot out of the batting crease and near to the pitch of the ball. Too often you are getting caught on the crease in no-man's-land. The new ball will always exploit any weakness or lack of technique. It always has done and that is why so many batsmen prefer to bat away from it in the middle order. Batting is simple. It is about footwork. It is about transferring your weight under pressure in a third of a second against fast bowlers. It has to be so precise otherwise you are out. Play right forward, play right back. Batting in the middle order you have time to play yourself in against some little spinner or the old ball that does not zip off quite as fast.