England’s Interim Head Coach Paul Collingwood say the external pressure on Joe Root’s leadership “amazes” him, having watched the captain at close quarters on the tour of the Caribbean.
England fell to defeat in the final Test in Grenada, meaning they have failed to win any of their last five series and won just once in 17 Tests.
Collingwood was placed in interim charge after the sacking of Chris Silverwood, with a new Head Coach set to be employed by a new Director of Cricket ahead of the Test summer, which starts on June 2 against New Zealand.
Defeat on the tour leaves Root under pressure for his job with a host of former players calling for him to resign. Root has dug in, however, and wants to remain in the job.
“Absolutely,” said Collingwood, when asked if the noise around Root’s position is only external. “Sometimes it amazes me that he gets questioned, because of how it feels within the dressing room. It’s the first time I’ve experienced him as a Head Coach, and worked with him. You can see the passion, the drive. There’s a real hunger to get it right.
“These aren’t just words coming out of his mouth. He’s desperate to get the team back to winning games of cricket. I can’t say anything but positivity in terms of what he’s done leadership wise in the dressing room, trying to move this team forward.
“He’s been unbelievable in this Test series to work with and see how he goes about his business, and being able to give the rest of the players responsibility. Himself and Ben Stokes have been superb on this trip.”
Collingwood said the team accepted the scrutiny they are under after such a poor run of form.
“Yeah, 100%,” he said. “I can see it because we are not winning games of cricket. When you have that kind of record, I can understand where the noise comes from.”
