Joe Root insisted he would wait until the end of the Ashes tour to discuss his future as test captain and called on England cricket to ‘reset’ their approach to the red ball format after Australia clinched a series victory within 12 days.

In the aftermath of England’s defeat in Melbourne, an unassailable 3-0 score sealed by an embarrassing collapse to 68 on morning three, Root was asked if he wanted to continue in a role that enabled an English record. of 27 test wins. and yet seven of the eight losses in Australia.

“The series is not over yet. We have two really big games and more than anything it would be wrong to look beyond that, ”replied Root, who was among the casualties as newbie Scott Boland pulled off remarkable six-for-seven bowling tricks. from four times. “I’m in the middle of a very important series. My energy has to be devoted to trying to win the next game. I can’t be selfish and start thinking about myself. I think more than anything you should continue to strive to do everything possible to get players in the best possible location to win tryouts.

Root had already been taken out for 28 minutes during 80 minutes of carnage, meaning his own annus mirabilis with the bat missed 80 runs to break Mohammad Yousuf’s test record of 1,788 during a calendar year. In the end, others fell short here, with Rory Burns dropping out in Melbourne second-best with 530 races in 2021. On the third morning they also recorded their 54th duck of 2021, tying a record set in 1998.

It was also England’s ninth defeat since early January, tying a new record for a calendar year. After 2016 saw eight test losses, the year ended with a jaded Alastair Cook leaving the harbor master’s office.

The decision may be made out of Root’s hands, with him and head coach Chris Silverwood set to have their positions reviewed by Ashley Giles when the director of men’s cricket arrives in Australia next week before. the fourth test.

However, the issues seem to go beyond the captain and the coach, with the latter Ashes defeating calls for English cricket to reassess its first-class approach to the game. Root is hoping a reboot will happen, similar to that which followed England’s heart-wrenching 2015 World Cup campaign and then saw Eoin Morgan lift the trophy four years later.

Root said, “It’s a big part of the state of play in our country right now that the one place you can really learn [to play Test cricket] is in the most difficult environment for a fairly young batting group.

“They have to learn here in the harshest environments. You look back to 2015 and the reset that happened in white ball cricket, and maybe that’s something that needs to happen in our red ball game as well. “

In the short term, the England squad faces a Covid-19 outbreak among the nearly 60 people on tour who saw three coaches and three family members tested positive for the virus and forced into self-isolation and could still threaten the completion of a tour which, after Sydney, ends with a day-night test in Hobart.

Both groups of players were cleared by emergency PCR testing before day three began at MCG, with further testing due to take place over the next few days.

For Australia, the winning streak crowns a rewarding few months that began with a surprise victory at the T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates. However, their captain, Pat Cummins, declined to project on the future of head coach Justin Langer, whose position has been the subject of much debate over the past 12 months.

Cummins, who replaced Tim Paine before the series started, said, “I think we’re going to savor this win today and continue the Ashes. I don’t think today is the day to speculate on [Langer’s future]. We will all sit down together after this series. His contract is due for renewal in a few months and we will take care of it then. “

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Commenting on his team’s Ashes campaign to date, Cummins added, “It doesn’t just look like a three-zero win, it’s really like we’re gearing up for the next few years as well. We currently have seven players in the world top 10 – four hitters [Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, David Warner and Travis Head] and three bowlers [Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc].

“Over the past couple of years, we probably haven’t had the performances we probably expected from ourselves. So I think that really solidifies the fact that we are a very good test cricket team and that’s a good sign for the next few years.