New England Test captain says he will be instinctive skipper and vows to stamp his authority on the team
Joe Root was appointed England Test captain on Monday. Pic/AFP
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London: New England Test captain Joe Root says he will be an "instinctive" captain — and has vowed to put his own "stamp" on the role. Root outlined his blueprint for England's future at Headingley yesterday, two days after he inherited the role from Alastair Cook. The 26-year-old said: "I think it would be silly to not take any advice from him. I'm sure there are a number of players within the dressing room that I will call upon to help me on occasions but of course I'll want to do things my way as well.
'Not scared to ask for help'
"I don't think you should be scared of asking for help on occasions but for the most part I like to think I'll be able to put my stamp on things and do things my way."
Asked what he would do differently, he added: "I think the beauty of the position right now is I have plenty of time to think about that. I'd like to think I'd be quite instinctive, I want us to always look to win and I want us to be a tough side to play against. Talking too much about it now would be wrong, I think we should get to the start of the summer and start showing people how we're going to go about it."
Root continued: "I think it would be silly of me not to speak to people who have been in the position before...like Cook, Strauss (England director of cricket Andrew Strauss). I've obviously known Michael Vaughan for a long time and maybe a few people away from cricket to get a different perspective on things."
Inexperience, not a worry
Root is relaxed about a perceived lack of experience, adding: "I didn't have much county experience before I got onto the Test team and I managed to find a way to be successful in that environment.
"I've got a lot of experience now with 50-odd games under my belt and I'd like to think for the past few years I have started to think as a captain in my own mind, so if Cooky ever needed help or advice or the bowlers came up to me and asked what I thought then I was switched on enough to think 'this is what I'd do'.
"There will be times when I need help but I'm really excited to get hold of the role and try to make it my own," Root added.
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