Former captain Michael Vaughan has issued a stark warning about the future of England 's Test team following their series defeat to the West Indies.
England's comprehensive ten wicket loss in Grenada means they have won just one of their last 17 Test matches and failed to win any of their last five series. Such a poor record has inevitably led to Joe Root's future as captain coming into question, although he has insisted he wants to continue.
He said: "I think I've made it quite clear at the start of this game and throughout this tour, I'm very passionate about trying to take this team forward. I will control what I can.
"I feel like the group are very much behind me, we're doing a lot of really good things and we just need to turn that into results now."
However, Root's long-time mentor Vaughan has questioned whether he has the "energy" to continue and warned that the England Test team "might go further backwards before it goes forward". Speaking on BT Sport, Vaughan said: "Let Joe Root sleep on it for a week or so.
"I fear this red-ball team might go further backwards before it goes forward and you’re going to have to have a lot of energy as a leader, a captain, you’re going to have to have a huge amount of energy to wake up every morning to captain this side.
"Generally in England conditions the Test match team win lots of games of cricket, win lots of series – well last summer they lost to New Zealand and they’re losing to India, so I don’t see this Test match side suddenly becoming a team that consistently wins series after series and that’s in English conditions.
"So Joe’s going to have to find a huge amount of energy and he’s also going to have to improve, because tactically in this game he was a long way short. The England side was a long way short.
"I don’t see too many players, out of this England Test match team bubble, who can suddenly come in and spark England into getting 450 consistently against the better opposition, when the balls moving about, and that’s why I do think there could be some darker days ahead and it’s going to take a leader with a lot of energy to try and get this Test match team right."
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