England vs Pakistan: Joe Root brings calm on return as captain
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How Root brought calm on return as England captain
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Figure caption: Highlights: England in control of opening Test against Pakistan after day one
By Matthew Henry
BBC Sport journalist at Headingley
Published 23 minutes ago
When Joe Root left the field for the first time in his second stint as England’s Test captain, he did so with Harry Brook’s arm over his shoulder. Two Yorkshiremen. Two England batters. The only two candidates when England needed to replace Ben Stokes as skipper.
Brook could have appeared scorned after being overlooked for his friend and team-mate. Root could have been keen to show he is the one with the power once again. Instead, the pair dovetailed throughout as England took the first steps in recovering from previous turmoils to dismiss Pakistan for 171 on day one of their new era at Headingley. It was an encouraging start.
Root had already celebrated his return by winning the toss and watching Ollie Robinson take a wicket with the game’s first ball, and the match was only five balls old when Brook’s influence was first felt.
As Pakistan number three Shan Masood poked, Brook, who has shown himself a canny tactician as white-ball captain, suggested a reinforced gully region. Root, who was criticised for his feel during his first spell in charge, was happy to agree, though a ruthless streak was soon shown when Jofra Archer was hooked from the attack after two wayward overs with the new ball.
Positioned at mid-off rather than the slips, and with his two young children watching on, he expertly controlled the flow of the game.
Root has made the move from the slips – where he has taken more than two thirds of his joint-record 218 Test catches – to make it easier for him to be in the ear of his bowlers. It also allowed him to ensure the ball was always returned to the bowler via their captain. Nothing could happen until the 35-year-old had let go of the ball.
Captaining from mid-off was a tactic used by Root’s predecessor Stokes and former skipper Michael Vaughan โ another influential figure in Root’s career, having come through the same Sheffield club.
"I might not be as dynamic as Ben but we’ll see if we can make it work," Root said on Tuesday.
In Ollie Robinson, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, and Josh Tongue he has an exciting pace quartet but one still raw.
Root appeared keen not to overbear. Overs from Ollie Robinson would go by without any meaningful conversation between captain and bowler. A word before the first ball, another after the sixth. Stokes was a hands-on skipper, always chatting and encouraging, but Root quietly observed.
"One of the big challenges is not trying to be Ben Stokes," was another of Root’s pre-match comments.
