Root unfazed by form slump, points to 14,000-run legacy amid lbw struggles

Joe Root is not losing sleep over his batting form, even though the numbers suggest he should be. England's Test captain has crossed 14,000 career runs—only Sachin Tendulkar has more—and he is leaning on that legacy as he navigates what has become an alarming pattern: nine leg-before-wicket dismissals in his last seven Tests, including seven times already this summer. His average of 29.44 is the second-lowest of any home season in his 14-year international career. He has reached 50 just twice since the start of summer.

Root is 35 now, and when he spoke to the BBC's Today at the Test program, he acknowledged the frustration without conceding defeat. He pointed to the conditions—the ball is moving more than ever, he said, and the seam is deviating sharply in English cricket this summer. He also suggested that four of his nine dismissals might have gone the other way had the umpires' calls fallen differently. But his core argument was simpler: he has solved problems before, and he will solve this one too.

The lbw problem is specific and measurable. All nine dismissals have come against pace bowlers, and notably, none against bowlers with exceptional speed. The fastest has been around 84 miles per hour. The pattern is even narrower: right-arm bowlers pitching the ball outside off stump and bringing it back toward him. This is not a mystery of technique so much as a vulnerability being systematically exploited.

Root also raised the question of the ball itself. Dukes, the manufacturer, has made a change to the lacquer this summer, he suggested, because the previous version was denting surfaces. When the BBC contacted Dukes, the company denied any alteration to its process. The claim remains unresolved, but Root's willingness to name it shows how thoroughly he is searching for explanations beyond his own batting.

David Warner, the former Australia opener, had taken a public shot at Root's lbw vulnerability ahead of last year's Ashes series, suggesting he needed to remove the "surfboard" from his front leg. At the time, the criticism was premature—Root had been lbw only three times to seam bowlers in the stretch from August 2022 through December 2023. But the pattern began in earnest when Jhye Richardson trapped him in the Boxing Day Test in Australia, and it has accelerated since. In 12 innings since that moment, Root has been lbw nine times.

Michael Vaughan, who captained England before Root, backed him to work through the issue. Vaughan noted that Root has overcome problems in the past and will do so again, though he acknowledged that the frequency of the dismissals makes it a genuine concern. Despite Root's lack of substantial contributions with the bat, England won their series against Pakistan with a 194-run victory in the second Test at Lord's—Root's second win in as many matches since returning to the captaincy.

Root's tone throughout was measured and philosophical. He spoke of the game's demands, of the need to keep working and evolving, of the reality that nothing is given freely in Test cricket. He also addressed the wider mood in the squad, expressing frustration over another drinking incident involving a player—pace bowler Brydon Carse was dropped from the Pakistan series after an incident outside a nightclub in Derby. Root told his players to celebrate the series win "sensibly" and "in a grown-up way," and he made clear he had warned the squad against repeating such lapses. The captain's concern was not just about form at the crease, but about discipline off it.