Truly believe England are making good strides in the right direction but Ashes remains the pinnacle, points Joe Root

Truly believe England are making good strides in the right direction but Ashes remains the pinnacle, points Joe Root

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Joe Root has his sights on the 'Urn

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England skipper Joe Root, ahead of a busy 2021 for the Three Lions, has pointed out that he believes that his side are making good progress in the right direction. While stating that, he added that their goal for the year would be claiming the ‘Urn while keeping all the players fit and healthy.

Over the last year, since cricket has resumed, England have not just brought the much-needed results but also brought a balance between workload and new faces. The Three Lions have handed caps to new-comers while still giving ample rest to the regulars. Barring the result against India, England have also completed Test series wins over Pakistan, West Indies and Sri Lanka. 

England skipper Joe Root, who has seen his team rise in status, pointed out that he believes that his team is making good strides in the right direction. Alongside that, he also added that they have an opportunity to keep improving, with series against New Zealand and India in the coming months. However, his eye is on the main prize, the ‘Ashes’, which he believes is the pinnacle. 

"We've made good strides over the last couple of years as a Test tea. It's not been plain sailing, we've not had it all our own way, but we still improved,” Root said, reported ESPNCricinfo. 

"I truly believe we are making good strides in the right direction, and now we've got an opportunity to keep improving, keep getting better and peak for Australia, which is the pinnacle for us.

"We've got some really important cricket coming up. And we've got to prioritise that. So when we sit down, we'll factor in everything as best we can, and make sure that we've got a real clear idea of how we want to go, how we want the year to look, and how we're going to peak for that tour of Australia."

Earlier this week, Chris Silverwood admitted that his side would field new faces in the series against New Zealand. Root called it a ‘tricky’ balance and stated that the aim to create an environment where no one is left in the cold. 

"It's always a tricky balance. What you're trying to do is create that environment where you've got a strong squad of players that have been together for a good period of time, but no-one going in cold.

"It's very difficult at the minute, the circumstances make it very tricky. You've got to factor in so many different things and the welfare of the players is obviously paramount."

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