Can Joe Root Inspire England To Another Ashes Triumph This Winter?

Is Joe Root the best batsman on the planet right now? He is certainly up there with the likes of Steve Smith and Virat Kohli on current form and it would take a brave man to write the England captain off. To put his recent efforts into perspective, Root has scored 50 or higher in each of his last six Test matches – four of those against South Africa and two against the West Indies.

At just 26 years old, he still has plenty of room for improvement too, and that is the scary thing. Root’s potential has no boundaries; he could be one of the greatest England batsmen of all-time if he continues at his current rate.

With a Test match average of 54.30 and 32 half centuries in just 109 innings, he truly is a remarkable talent and he could be the difference between England and Australia in this winter’s Ashes series. Winning the Ashes in Australia won’t be easy; it never is. England’s record Down Under is modest to say the least but Root has the qualities to inspire and lead his team both on and off the cricket pitch.

As a captain, the Yorkshire star has developed and matured since he was appointed as skipper and Root now looks well accustomed to his central role. Not only is he now integral with the bat but his impact and influence in the field are well felt.

Unfortunately for Root and England supporters, he has struggled to inspire confidence in previous fixtures based in Australia. His average of 27.42 is merely half of his usual average whilst he has notched just one of his 32 half centuries Down Under.

Ultimately, Root is going to have to muster up all of his experience and focus on ignoring such statistics. At the end of the day, past records shouldn’t matter too much; current form is arguably more important.