Xtra Time Web Desk: Former England captain Graham Gooch has come down heavily against the England top order batsmen. According to Gooch, the current team is heavily reliant on Joe Root. The England captain has been the stand out player for his team, single handedly shouldering the responsibility of the batting.
“We’re too reliant on one person. I have had that experience and that’s not a complaint but at certain stages of my career there was a greater responsibility on having to deliver. As a player, you can be in the best form of your life but you can’t deliver all the time and that expectation is not helpful. You need everyone to contribute. When I became captain, it spurred me on for the best period of my career,” Gooch said in an interview to Daily Mail.
England skipper Joe Root has been the best batsman for his side by a distance. In the first four innings, he has scored 386 runs at an average of 128.66. However, none of his teammates have shined with the bat as the rest of the players have only contributed 513 at 13.86.
Gooch added, “Whatever he says, Joe will be feeling the pressure because at the moment he’s 50, 60, 70 per cent of our batting, isn’t he? Can he keep this form going for the rest of the series? Of course, he can. He’s a world-class player and he’s performing unbelievably. He can keep it going. But of course, with any performer in any sport, there is going to be a fallow period. It’s not possible to keep it going game after game after game,”
The third Test begins at Headingley from August 25.