England vs Pakistan, 2018: Atherton and Vaughan "not pleased" with Root's tactics
What's the story?
Former England captains Michael Atherton and Michael Vaughan have been very vocal on Joe Root's bizarre gameplan of random field placements on day two at Lord’s, with Atherton labeling Joe Root’s decision to post himself at short-leg "utterly ridiculous". Meanwhile, England finished their second innings on 242, leaving Pakistan with a target of just 64 runs.
In case you didn't know...
Starting the day's play at 235/6 in response to Pakistan's 363, England needed a good score on board if they wanted to extend their lead and take the game away from Pakistan. But all it took was less than 28 minutes for Pakistan to wrap up the proceedings. Four wickets apiece for Amir and Abbas meant that England left Pakistan just 64 runs on target, which they completed with ease.
The details
Two days ago, when Pakistan were batting, Root was often found changing his field in a desperate search for wickets. At one point in the first session, Root donned a helmet and stationed himself at short-leg as speedster Mark Wood operated round the wicket. Atherton was astonished at the skipper’s decision to put himself in the firing line so close to the batsman. "I think that’s a ridiculous place to captain from," Atherton said. "Utterly ridiculous. You captain well from first slip. You captain well from mid-off or mid-on where you’ve got a nice view of the game."
"The captain should not be at short leg. You can’t see the game. All you’ve got a view of is the batsman’s backside."
While Atherton’s criticism was exclusively aimed at Root, Vaughan laid the blame on coach Trevor Bayliss as well. England had put down five glorious chances in the field on Friday and Vaughan points out that the interchanging field settings and strategic impatience stem from a lack of guidance from the mentor. "They just look like a side … (that) need oiling," Vaughan said. "They’re not well coached. This Test match team is not well coached. The cordon changes every other over. It’s a little bit like the schoolboy teams. You get in a position on the park that you fancy and you just stay in it. You don't move around. It disrupts the fielders' minds."
What's next
This is not the first time that Root's tactics have been questioned. The Ashes series that concluded by December last year was the first time when his decisions had been widely criticized. England definitely lacks someone who can take up the responsibility, and they will be looking to make amends in the second game at least.
Author's take
What the last two days of this game have shown is that, when it comes to captaincy, Joe Root is still a work in progress. He has only been on the job for a year and is still learning. In the process, he also made a couple of brave calls. For instance, he backed Ben Stokes to take the second new ball ahead of Jimmy Anderson, because he felt Stokes was charging in and making things happen. Not many captains would deny Anderson the new ball in England. Stokes doing well meant that the decision paid off, though it was probably the most unusual decision that one would have expected from an English captain. That being said, Root still needs to learn fast and bring the team back to its winning ways.