England's new captain Root inspired by Kohli and Smith

Tags: England, Joseph Edward Root, Virat Kohli, Steven Peter Devereux Smith

Published on: Feb 17, 2017

Joe Root, who has been chosen as England's new Test captain following Alastair Cook's resignation

Joe Root, who has been chosen as England's new Test captain following Alastair Cook's resignation is seeking inspiration from fellow international captains Virat Kohli and Steven Smith as he looks to rebuild England's fortunes following a tough recent run. As captain, Kohli averages more than 67. As a player, this number was 41. As for Smith, he averages 71 as leader and 53 as player.
Admitting, he wants to achieve something similar, Root, who himself averages an impressive 53, was quoted as saying in an AFP report, “That excites me. It’s a great motivator to make sure I do everything I can to get my batting in the best place possible and set the example for the rest of the guys in the team.”
Speaking at his home ground in Headingley, Root added, “You look at other guys who’ve taken similar roles like Virat and Steve Smith and they’ve gone on to bigger and better things and taken their game to the next level. I don’t see why I can’t look at it in the same light.
“It’s a great opportunity to take that added responsibility and really motivate me to get better. Every kid dreams of being England captain one day. I'm just really looking forward to getting my teeth into it and putting my mark on things," he went on to add.
Root termed getting the captaincy as the biggest honour. “I think it’s the biggest honour in the game, simple as that,” he said.
England’s next Test is against South Africa at Lord’s in July. He will have a tough ask to rebuild as England suffered an embarrassing loss in India, and drew against Bangladesh. Root though remains positive. “It’s a good opportunity to give something back to the game that has given me so much.
“I’m very lucky to have inherited an exciting team with a great blend of experience, raw talent and a core group of players who have played 20-30 games and are ready to take some more responsibility," he said.
He added: “I’d like to be a captain that wins, tough to play against, and I like to hope we’ll play cricket that is enjoyable to watch.
“It should be entertaining Test cricket and that’s something I want to get across to the team and the people watching," Root was further quoted as saying in the report.
--By A Cricket Correspondent

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