Joe Root urges England fans to ‘keep the faith’

When a captain is calling for the fans to “keep the faith” in the coming weeks it is worth wondering where to next.

That, though, is the unenviable position Joe Root found himself in after England lost their first Test of a home summer for the first time in 23 years.

This is only the second Test in the stronghold that is the month of May that they have lost in 17 years. It was a dismal defeat, too: by nine wickets and inside 10 sessions, against a Pakistan side that had lost eight of its last 11 Tests. They have now won eight of their last 11 against England, though.

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We know where England are going next, of course: Leeds, on Friday. England do not have long to turn things round.

Root met with Ed Smith, the new national selector, and Trevor Bayliss to discuss their team for the next Test. While they did so, the fans the captain had begged to “keep the faith, keep trusting, keep believing” drowned the sorrows and watched the IPL final – which, for all Andrew Strauss’s efforts, involved no English players, despite four being in the squads of the two teams playing.

The rest of the squad filed quietly out of the ground. After all the optimism of the build-up week, spirits seem back down where they were in the winter’s lowest moments. Root must find a way to lift them before Tuesday, when they – whoever they are – assemble in Leeds.

The impression was that England will stick not twist for Headingley then reconsider their position for the India series in August, which comes after nine ODIs – which neatly mirror the World Cup next year – and a few T20s. Nick Gubbins is likeliest to replace Mark Stoneman if they decide his time is up, while Joe Clarke and Sam Northeast, who is injured but will be fit by the India series, could come in for Dawid Malan.

“It's easy to look at [this result] and say 'Right, we need to make drastic changes’,” said Root. “But it's not just one or two guys – we were collectively all under par this week. We have to take that on the chin, learn the lessons very quickly and make sure we respond well. It would be very easy to go into next week feeling sorry for ourselves and think there's no way forward for us – but absolutely there is.

“We have been out performed in all three departments, we have not batted well enough, first innings in particular. We have shown a bit of character in the second innings with the bat but we have to be better. There have been a number of collapses recently and we have to find a way as a group. That’s a very individual thing but ultimately it’s about working out there together. Whether it’s absorbing a bit of pressure on occasions, being more patient.

"We got it wrong, we know that. We need to be better in these conditions. These conditions suit us as well which is why it’s so disappointing. Look at that dressing room, it's a talented team and there are guys in there who will do great things for England. Our next opportunity to do that is at Headingley. We’ve got to turn things around, we’ve got to be clever about how we do things. We’ve got to be smarter in certain situations. If we get that right you’ve seen the performances the guys can do, especially at home. It is disappointing.”

​Bayliss (below) did not mince his words as he spoke on Sky, describing the performance as “very disappointing” and “nowhere near good enough for Test level”. This is a familiar refrain. Bayliss is untouchable with the ODI side, but his role as coach of the Test side is as in focus as some of his players. In the longest format, they have gone backwards in the three years he has been in charge, with this result – and the manner it came about – a new low.

“The team is ever evolving and changing,” he said. “We are trying to make individuals better. It’s no secret that in the one-day team we have about 16 guys who should be in the XI. The Test team, we have seven or eight and three or four positions that we are trying to nail down and haven’t quite been up to the mark.”

That search goes on.