LONDON: England Check captain Joe Root desires to profit from some sudden further time together with his household as he urged his facet to replicate on their sport whereas cricket is placed on maintain as a result of coronavirus pandemic.
Monday ought to have seen Root main England within the second Check towards Sri Lanka in Colombo.
However the tour was halted halfway via a warm-up match on March 13, earlier than the two-Check collection had even began, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have postponed all home cricket till at the very least Could 28.
“Getting the chance to spend time with family at home is obviously something we don’t get a huge amount of,” stated Root, the daddy of a three-year-old son, in a convention name. “Very strange times we are living in. I think it’s important that when we get our opportunities we try to help and support everyone around us and really come together like we’ve seen a lot of throughout the whole nation over the last couple of weeks.”
Whereas there is probably not any cricket, Root’s duties as Check captain are nonetheless persevering with as he checks on the well being and well-being of his squad.
“I’ve actually been in touch with every single player across the course of the winter throughout the last couple of weeks to make sure everyone is OK, make sure everyone is getting their stuff done,” he stated.
England drew the Ashes collection final 12 months earlier than successful away to South Africa.
They’re presupposed to play three-Check collection towards each the West Indies and Pakistan within the English summer time, though the way forward for these campaigns stays unsure.
“Trying to get a bit of feedback as well. We now have some time on our hands to have a good assessment of where we are as a team,” stated Root. “I suppose [we can] take a look at just a few issues and use this as a possibility to essentially enhance issues and the place we would need to take the crew ahead. There’s clearly lots going round in sport, a whole lot of uncertainty about when issues will begin once more.
“I think one thing that the guys have done really well is try to stay active, stay fit, stay positive. That’s been quite clear when I’ve called with everyone.”
Printed in Daybreak, March 31st, 2020
