‘Joe Root is an outstanding cricketer but lacks leadership qualities’: Brendon McCullum

Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum feels Joe Root lacks leadership abilities. Root’s captaincy has been the hot topic of debate after England’s back to back series losses. They lost to India in India, New Zealand in England and again against India at home. They suffered a crushing defeat to Australia in the first Ashes Test at Gabba by 9 wickets. Root has had a prolific year with the bat and has amassed more than 1500 runs in Tests in 2021. However, he has failed to lead the team to wins. McCullum feels that Root is a great batter but is yet to prove himself as a smart leader.

“I think Joe Root is a wonderful guy, an outstanding cricketer and they talk about him as a very good leader. I haven’t really seen it,” the 40-year-old McCullum, who has played over 100 Tests and scored nearly 6,500 runs, told SENZ Breakfast on Monday.

McCullum feels Root at times allows the game to drift away from himself, adding that a leader has to inspire others around him which Root has failed to do so far. “To me, leadership is not just about being able to make the right calls at the right time tactically as a skipper. He’s not, to me, up there as one of the best in the world at it. He allows games to drift at times. When they had Australia on the ropes the other day, he allowed the game to drift.

“What is of more concern is that leadership is not just about being the best player in the team. Leadership is about inspiring those around you to achieve higher success than they would otherwise achieve,” he said.