Joe Root finally opens up about England's Test captaincy stint; says 'it sucked the life of me'
Joe Root is no longer England's Test captain, with Ben Stokes handling the duties now. However, the former has admitted the role sucked his life out, which also affected his family life, as he chose to resign.
FollowFormer English Test skipper and top-order batter Joe Root was one of the most successful skippers of the side in the longest form. However, England was horrendous during the ongoing ICC World Test Championship, failing to win its opening seven games, putting it at the bottom of the table. Following calls for Root to be dropped from captaincy, he quit the role, with all-rounder Ben Stokes taking up the duties, and England has been faring well under the latter. After a few months, Root opened up about his leadership role, stating that it was too tough on him, affecting his personal life.
As he talked during the Vaughany and Tuffers Cricket Club podcast, Root revealed, "The last couple of years, it's sucked the life of me. And it did take its toll. It was the right decision for the group, first and foremost, but I wasn't myself. I was coming home from the series, and I wasn't able to switch off or wasn't able to be present with my family."
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"And I could see myself as a shadow of the person I want to be. I think sometimes you've got to be big enough to understand that it's time to move on and for someone else to take that great honour on. Out there [during the West Indies tour], I was desperate to turn things around," added Root.
"To come back to England, have a fresh look at things, but I'm so glad that we went about things the way we did. And I spoke to Ben personally, as my vice-captain and probably closest friend within the group first, and quite a while before anyone else. And then, it was quite a relief once I'd spoken to family and got that off my chest," Root continued.
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However, Root clarified that the only way out of his captaincy troubles were the moments when he walked out in the middle to bat for England. "That was my quiet time, if you like. It's only you. You don't have to think about anything other than watching the ball. And the longer I stayed out there, the more peaceful it was. And, the less stuff that I had on my mind and the more in control of things you are as well," he concluded.
