He also claimed that any success England have in Test cricket is "in spite of county cricket, not because of county cricket". In a damning assessment, Root told reporters: "Anyone that’s coming into this Test team at the minute is doing it in spite of county cricket, not because of county cricket. However, former Australia, South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka head coach Mickey Arthur has rejected Root's claim that county cricket is to blame for England's recent struggles. We weren't talking about the system when England won the World Cup and became the best white-ball team in the world. Maybe English batters need to be coached a bit better at an earlier stage of their career."

Source: Daily Mirror April 08, 2022 09:49 UTC