Former England all-rounder Geoffrey Boycott has criticized Joe Root’s leadership as England lost to New Zealand in the second Test at The Oval, saying the stand-in captain appeared to have learned nothing from his past. Boycott also welcomed the return of Ben Stokes for the third Test, saying England wanted him back.Stokes missed the second Test when an investigation was carried out on him and Gus Atkinson for taking part in a night club competition with a rugby player after England’s victory in the first Test. Root was given the captaincy ahead of vice-captain Harry Brook. England fielded three players in the match and were bowled out for 253 runs, Root’s 27th loss as Test captain.The England and Wales Cricket Board later confirmed that Stokes would return for the third Test. The club said Stokes and Atkinson had received written warnings after being found guilty of breaching contract terms.Writing in The Telegraph, Boycott said: “Thank heavens Ben Stokes is back to lead England at Trent Bridge because it looks like Joe Root hasn’t learned anything since becoming England captain.”He also praised Root’s batting while asking if he is his captain.“Now that Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson have retired from Test match cricket, Root is the best batsman in the world. What an amazing thing to say about the smashing boy that everyone loves, including me.Boycott pointed to Root’s handling of Jofra Archer, saying it reminded him of England’s 2019 tour of New Zealand, when Archer was asked to be known for a long time and spend a lot of time playing the short game.“Captaincy is a gift and a good captain has an innate knowledge of how to bowl and field to set up different batsmen,” Boycott said. “You can’t read it in a book but you can learn it by watching opposition managers from all over the world. Sometimes it’s coincidence or luck and sometimes you get a guy who is lucky and good then you get a very successful manager. Stokes is very good at catching Jofra Archer when Joe seemed to be making the same mistakes at the Oval as he did when he beat England in New Zealand 2019.”Boycott strongly criticized Archer’s work late on opening day.“It was crazy that Joe asked him to return eight runs at the end of the first day at the Oval with short balls aimed at New Zealand batsman Glenn Phillips and the latter,” Boycott wrote.
