'Less than convinced': Handshake controversy erupts on Ashes eve

England skipper Joe Root is reportedly ‘frustrated’ and ‘less than convinced’ that the pre-match handshakes offered by Australian counterpart Tim Paine are required.

Following on from his decision to introduce the gesture since taking over as captain, Paine has had the handshakes added to the running order before the first Ashes Test on Thursday.

The Guardian reports Root, however, is peeved to have discovered it would take place without having been asked previously.

“Root and Trevor Bayliss, the England captain and head coach respectively, are understood to have been surprised during a meeting on Wednesday with Ranjan Madugalle, the International Cricket Council match referee, when they saw it on the running order agreed by the two countries without being asked formally,” wrote the newspaper’s Ali Martin.

The frustration comes despite Australia and England shaking hands without incident before last summer’s ODI series led by Paine and Eoin Morgan.

“Root, while not looking to stoke up ill-feeling between the teams, is said to be less than convinced of the necessity for what is essentially a PR move, not least since it does not take place before any other Test series,” the report continued.

“It now remains to be seen whether the England captain reluctantly complies and the handshakes take place before play.”

Root and vice-captain Ben Stokes had already shared their doubts that Australia’s post-sandpaper charm offensive would last until the end of the Ashes.

Australia have been on their best behaviour since the Cape Town cheating scandal, as reflected by the fact they haven't been fined by any match referee since March last year.

There were no scraps of note during the two World Cup clashes between Australia and England.

But the taxing nature of the Test cricket, coupled with the intensity of cricket's most famed rivalry, has many questioning whether Australia will revert to old habits.

"It is weird Aussies trying to be nice to you. I think once you get out in the middle and cross the white line, the real competitive side of both teams will come out," Stokes said.

"There is always something that happens between teams in Ashes series and I don't think this will be any different."

Teammate Moeen Ali offered a differing view, writing in his Guardian column that "it's well known that I have personally received some abuse in the past but Australia are actually quite nice to play against these days".

Steve Waugh, on deck at Justin Langer's invitation as a consultant, has already vowed Australia will be no "shrinking violets" in the five-Test series that begins on Thursday.

Root is unsure whether Australia's approach will be different from 2017-18, when the visitors were unimpressed with their hosts' conduct.

"Some of the comments that have crept out over the last couple of weeks makes me suggest that maybe not," Root said.

"We'll see. I'm sure it'll come up in the preview to the game with the match referees and (captains).

"We've got a way of playing our cricket and we don't want to get involved in anything that's unnecessary."

Root has previously called out abuse, notably telling Shannon Gabriel "don't use it as an insult, there's nothing wrong with being gay" after the West Indies paceman's alleged homophobic sledge earlier this year during a Test.

The rivalry between Root and Steve Smith, two of the world's best batsmen, will be one of the intriguing subplots of the series.

Root got on the front foot early by suggesting Smith is a "proven world-class performer" but only made runs in the 2015 Ashes on docile pitches.

"When the wickets were very good and flat he made it really count, made two very big hundreds. When it moved it around it looked slightly different," Root said.

"It'll be interesting to see how he approaches and tries to combat the movement out there and (if) we can exploit anything early on."

with AAP