Stokes to lead England as Root set to miss first Test against WI, claims report
West Indies coach Phil Simmons is in short-term self-isolation after being allowed to attend the funeral of his father-in-law and has since twice tested negative for coronavirus, team chiefs said on Sunday
England captain Joe Root is set to miss the first Test against the West Indies next week as he will attend the birth of his second child, a BBC report said.
Ben Stokes is set to captain England for the first time in Root’s absence.
The three-test series between the two teams will mark the resumption of cricket after the sport was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Root’s wife is expecting a baby around similar time as the first Test and if Root attends the birth of his second child then he will have to go under mandatory self-isolation before joining the team again.
Veteran England fast-bowler Stuart Broad batted for all-rounder Stokes to lead the side in the first Test against West Indies.
Broad believes Stokes is well-equipped to captain the team in Root’s absence as he has a ‘ good cricketing brain’ and there won’t be any pressure on him considering he will wear the armband for just one match.
“Stokes will be fine. The toughest part of the job is off the field, lots of extra meetings and planning, which he won’t have to get involved in,” Broad told reporters in a virtual news conference as per Sky Sports.
“He has a great cricket brain, he has grown and matured over the last few years so captaining one game will be easy. There won’t be much pressure as he’s not being judged over a long period of time. I have no doubts he will be brilliant.”
Meanwhile, West Indies coach Phil Simmons is in short-term self-isolation after being allowed to attend the funeral of his father-in-law and has since twice tested negative for coronavirus, team chiefs said on Sunday.
Prior to the start of their three-test tour of England, Simmons had already sought permission to leave the team’s bio-secure bubble at Old Trafford in Manchester.
“The entire process of his exit and re-entry to the bio-secure location was approved and managed by the medical teams of cricket West Indies (CWI) and the England and Wales cricket Board (ECB),” said a statement.
Simmons travelled to the small private family cremation and returned on Friday.
“Following his return, Simmons has been in self-isolation away from other members of the squad, exactly as had always been planned.
“He has so far undergone two COVID-19 tests since Friday - both of which came back negative.
“He will have another test on Wednesday before he will re-join the squad as they prepare for the three-match series against England.”
The first Test of three against England gets underway in Southampton, another bio-secure location, on July 8. West Indies will display ‘Black Lives Matter’ logos on their shirts during next month’s Test series against England in a show of solidarity with the global movement.
The tourists will follow the lead of English Premier League footballers during the three-test series, which starts at the Ageas Bowl on July 8.
The move comes after the death of AfricanAmerican George Floyd in US police custody last month.
The logo, which has a clenched fist in place of the letter ‘A’ in the word “Black”, was designed by Watford player Troy Deeney’s partner Alisha Hosannah.
West Indies captain Jason Holder said the team remained focused on winning the series but that there were bigger issues to address.
“This is a pivotal moment in history for sports, for the game of cricket and for the West Indies cricket team,” he said in a statement issued by cricket West Indies.
“We have come to England to retain the Wisden Trophy but we are very conscious of happenings around the world and the fight for justice and equality.