Root’s heroes find template that can wrest back Ashes
throughout this trip. It would have been very easy for us to go off the rails after that first game but we stuck tight together. Even after losing Rory Burns and Jimmy Anderson we made sure we wouldn’t change how we went about things as a group. ‘It gave opportunities for young guys to take their chance and I’m really proud of how everyone was able to deliver.’ The England captain was under pressure after losing the series in New Zealand before Christmas and then being convincingly beaten in the series opener at Centurion. But his side hit back following a template they hope will serve them well in the build-up to the next Ashes which starts in November 2021. ‘We put things in place this winter about the way we want to play,’ said Root. ‘It has taken time and it will continue to take time for us to stay consistent and adapt to different conditions but we are learning quickly. Young guys are coming into a very good environment and succeeding.’ Wood earned the player of the match award for taking nine wickets, as well as smashing five sixes in a pivotal last-wicket stand of 82 with Stuart Broad that swung the momentum at the end of England’s first innings. And the Durham paceman says he hopes he had finally put his injury problems behind him. ‘My ankle has held up great,’ said the injury-plagued Wood, who was missing for seven months with a serious side strain before making his spectacular comeback in the third Test in Port Elizabeth. ‘Not playing for so long and then backing it up with two Tests is huge for me. There was a little doubt before this game whether I was too sore to play but I’m delighted they made the decision because it turned out to be a bit of genius. There have been times when I thought I’d never play another Test so I just have to keep the mentality of “just the next game” now.’ Root insisted he had no issue with South African captain Faf du Plessis who made physical contact with Jos Buttler during a heated verbal exchange after being hit by a throw from mid-on by Sam Curran. ‘I thought it was absolutely nothing,’ said Root. ‘I thought Faf was using it as an excuse to get himself going.’