Gower: Find the Root of problem or lose Ashes

JOE ROOT will be feeling the heat, regardless of which England team eventually travels Down Under to faces the furnace-like pressure of an Ashes tour.

That’s the view of former England captain David Gower, who fears that if Root (above) doesn’t score heavily, then England are on a hiding to nothing against the Aussies on home turf.

England haven’t won a match, let alone a series, in Australia since 201011. On that tour, Andrew Strauss’s side had six batsmen averaging over 40 as the hosts were thumped by a side operating at the peak of their powers.

That’s not something you could say about the current team, with only Root of England’s likely top six averaging over 40.

The Yorkshireman is streets ahead of his team-mates.

But if Australia can stop his prolific run in 2021, then

Gower believes that England will be in big trouble.

“There are gaps in our Test team,” said the 64-year-old. “If you say that our best XI includes (Ben) Stokes and (Jofra) Archer, and one definitely won’t go and the other is very unlikely to, then we’re already missing two key players.

“If we have everyone else available then I would still favour Australia, especially on their home turf.

“One of the big things we’re going to struggle with is getting runs on the board, especially if

Joe Root gets less than 150 every time he bats.

“If you have four of the top six having reasonably or very good days then you should be alright. You never expect everybody to get it right in a normal day’s cricket but if four out of six produce then you’re in the game. We haven’t got a top three that averages 40 and when you consider that 40 has always been the benchmark and that 50 is when you think ‘now we’re talking, this guy can really play’, then we’re a long way short of that. You don’t win an Ashes series, not one Down Under, with that lack of firepower.”

Despite Australia’s own batting struggles, they can rely on Steve Smith, David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne, who all average over or close to 50.

But there is still some uncertainty over whether the tour will go ahead at all. Australia’s strict Covid restrictions and the government’s reluctance to bend the rules for England’s families has already led to speculation that some players could boycott the tour entirely.

Although he admits that he would go if he was still a player, Gower (left) says he would understand if some England players decided not to travel.

“Asking me if I would go is not necessarily a proper question because I would go for the hell of it anyway,” he said. “But it’s a very different equation for those who have concerns about their families.

“These guys have been in constant bubbles and they will have to be in more bubbles for a prolonged period this winter. I think a certain degree of understanding is compulsory.”

Bookmakers rate the Aussies good things for the Ashes. They are long odds-on at 4-11, with England around the 4-1 mark. The draw can be backed at 13-2.

David Gower is ambassador for The Cricketer magazine, celebrating its centenary year throughout 2021 (www.thecricketer.com)