Innings and fire of 14 runs Melbourne The Cricket Ground on Tuesday ensured England an end to 2021 with an incredible record of nine Test losses in a calendar year.
Joe Root Now captained England to seven defeats in eight Tests in Australia, and also played in a disappointing 5–0 whitewash in the 2013/14 series.
Root’s ability to get the best out of his team is under question, with former greats saying he has lost the dressing room.
Former England batsman Geoffrey Boycott said, “Nobody wants to give up captaincy, but it’s not about Joe – it’s about getting people to perform better.”
Root’s rally in Melbourne’s lead fell on deaf ears, with their batsmen scoring 68 in the second innings after scoring only 185 runs in the first innings.
In the wake of Tuesday’s defeat, he was left to handle media duties alone at the MCG ground while his players made a bee-line to the shelter of the dressing room.
The 30-year-old Yorkshireman must now somehow try again to rally the tired-looking squad.
Even fast bowler James Anderson, who bowled brilliantly in Melbourne, described the tour as a slog rather than a privilege.
“Look, it’s been a tough tour so far. But it’s always here, it’s never simple or plain sailing,” Anderson said after the second day in Melbourne.
“I got a chance to wear an England shirt, so I’m enjoying it.”
Who’s next?
Former players and pundits have called for a “red ball reset”, saying England’s administrators have let the longest format freeze at the expense of one-day and T20 cricket.
But no systemic change can help Root to turn around the team’s poor batting line-up before the Sydney Test begins on January 5.
None of the England openers – Rory Burns, Haseeb Hameed and Zak Crawley – have shown themselves to be able to handle Australia’s pace with the new ball, which has put tremendous pressure on Root and the middle order.
“The concern is I’m not sure who’s next for them,” former Australia captain Mark Taylor told the Nine Network.
Burns and middle-order batsman Ollie Pope were both dropped after Adelaide, and with wicketkeeper Jos Buttler in poor form, the selectors were left with few bullets to fire.
With the series losing, he could choose to stick with Crowley and put more time in Pope, or possibly give eight Tests to Essex batsman Dan Lawrence.
England’s bowlers could at least leave Melbourne with their heads held high, restricting Australia to 267.
The balance of England’s attack with seamer Anderson, Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson, and spinner Jack Leach’s superior performance, proved to be the most effective of the series so far and the experienced Stuart Broad was sidelined again.
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