'A concern': Major Joe Root conundrum revealed after Ashes fail

Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum has questioned Joe Root's captaincy following the first Test against Australia.

Root was heavily scrutinised following the nine-wicket loss to Australia after his decision to bat first on an overcast Day 1 dramatically backfired.

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England had Australia worried on Day 2, before Travis Head steadied the innings with a superb century.

Root performed admirably with the bat in the second innings, but a poor morning on Day 4 allowed Australia to storm away with the match.

And McCullum said while Root is a wonderful person and cricketer, he questioned whether the captain allows games to slip away from him.

“They talk about him as a very good leader… I haven’t really seen it. To me, leadership is not only about making the right call at the right time tactically as a skipper," McCullum said on SENZ Radio.

“They had Australia on the ropes the other day, he allowed the game to drift. When you give Australia any chance to fight back they will.”

McCullum questions Joe Root's impact on England players

The former New Zealand captain also wondered whether Root was getting the best out of his players.

McCullum said part of the role as Test captain is to bring the best out of your players.

A recent stat showed Root has scored 1,544 runs in 2021, the most ever by an Englishman, at an average of 64.33.

However, the next highest run scorer is Rory Burns with 492 with an average of 28.94.

The list only makes for grim reading afterwards.

McCullum questioned whether Root was actually getting the best out of the batters around him.

“Leadership is not just about being the best player in the team,” he added.

“Leadership is about inspiring those around you to achieve higher success than they would otherwise achieve.

“The fact that no one else in that batting line-up has been able to progress and achieve under Joe Root’s captaincy to me is a cause of concern.

“Now there is such a stark contrast between the skipper, who is so far ahead of everyone else, it can actually create a negative effect on the rest of the guys."

But in a different tone, former England captain Nasser Hussain has called for the players to step up and help Root.

England have now lost 10 of their past 11 Tests in Australia and won only one of 10 matches since they beat India in the first Test in February.

And Hussain said the support isn't good enough.

"For a long time now, England have found themselves 3-20, 3-30, 4-40. They were 4-29 in the first innings of this Test and went on to be bowled out for 147," Hussain wrote in his Sky Sports column.

"Root has been their star player for a number of years and is the only one this year who averages over 40 in Test cricket.

"Root and (Dawid) Malan are the only ones averaging over 30, Root and Rory Burns are the only ones with Test hundreds.

"I'm afraid that's just not good enough, that is not going to win you that many Test matches. It can't just be Root."

with AAP

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