2019 has been a year of transition in Test cricket, admits Joe Root

England's loss to South Africa by 107 runs completed a very appalling year for England's red-ball cricket. Although the 2019 World Cup will remain a high point in England's cricketing history, the pain of letting bitter rivals Australia win the Ashes back in their own home is something that sums up their year. Skipper Joe Root reflected on the way the year has been after his side's defeat to the Proteas and expressed his emotions about it.

"It's been frustrating. It's been quite a big year of transition in Test cricket. There's been a lot of change over the year," said Root.

The year began on a disastrous note for England as they lost the Test series 2-1 away to West Indies and then almost bottled the one-off Test against Ireland. They were far from convincing against an inspired Australian side who looked well prepared and managed to draw the series 2-2, thereby helping the Aussies retain the Ashes in England after a gap of 18 years.

"There is still a long way that this team can go and we are looking at all the areas where we can get better," Root stated.

The New Zealand away series was also gone as they lost 1-0 and this defeat against South Africa in the first test made it disastrous for Root's side. However, the English skipper is trying to stay positive and wants to have faith in his team's abilities. he is hopeful that the team will learn from their experiences and perform better in the year 2020 in order to try and reach the World Test Championship final at home in June 2021.

"Over time, if we can learn these lessons and find ways of shifting our mentality into the first innings from the second innings, then we are going to give ourselves a much better chance of winning games," he signed off.

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