5 ways Joe Root can make England a better side

The resignation of skipper Alastair Cook after a disastrous Indian tour was expected as was the promotion of Joe Root, Cook's most faithful student in his tenure at the helm. But the challenges awaiting captain Root are huge and whether he survives them like a warrior or succumbs to them will decide his future as England skipper.

World Cricket is used to seeing the best batsman of the team promoted to captaincy and doing extremely well. Take the case of Virat Kohli or Kane Williamson, both whom made a seamless transition to captaincy and in fact did a better job batting when captaining the side.

If Joe Root can keep up with the current trend, England will be pleased. But captaincy as such is much more than individual performances and Root will have to lift up his troops from the wounds suffered in India.

Here we take a look at five ways Joe Root can make England a better Test outfit than under Cook.

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#5 Defining the top order

A huge challenge that awaits Root will be the Ashes in December, before which he has important series against the South Africans and West Indies. While South Africa under Du Plessis is a huge challenge, England are expected to win on their home ground.

Joe Root will have the task of defining his top order before that. When Keaton Jennings and Haseeb Hameed are both fit, Root will have to find a place for them. The no.4 slot was occupied by Moeen Ali without much success and there could be an opening at 4 if Ali is asked to go back down the order.

Root can push himself down to 4, where he has had great success and ask one of Jennings or Hameed to occupy the crucial no.3 spot. While it will be a huge test for the youngsters, having a technically correct batsman at three is a plus. If he can inspire them to good performances, England will have an answer to a long-standing issue.

#4 Choosing his seamers

Can Root use Steven Finn more effectively?

While James Anderson and Stuart Broad still lead the pace attack, Chris Woakes gave a good account of himself in India with the new and old ball. Jake Ball is also a capable youngster with pace and fire in his belly.

But Root will be eager to bring back the Steven Finn of old. Finn is a fiery bowler on his day and has all the attributes required of a world class seamer. But accommodating the likes of Anderson, Broad, Woakes and Finn in the same line-up will be tough, especially with Ben Stokes available.

Jake Ball only adds to the conundrum and Root will have to rally together his quicker men without undermining their confidence. Cook made the mistake of entrusting Finn with little responsibility and losing a quality seamer. Root should be careful to not repeat his mistakes.

#3 Solving the lead spinner confusion

Root must choose between these two outside the sub-continent

Adil Rashid had a good series in India but often looked lost when the opposition was in the charge. Moeen Ali, meanwhile, contained but failed to get the wickets needed to be called a frontline spinner.

This poses a huge challenge for Root, especially in seaming conditions. He can accommodate only one spinner and going by recent records, it has to be Moeen Ali. Ali is a superb batsman as well and can be a huge boost to the batting line-up coming down the order.

But then, Test cricket is something which can be won or lost by a lead spinner. Does Moeen Ali qualify as one?

With wrist spinners having the time of their life in World Cricket, Root could go the unconventional way and give Rashid a few games on the trot.

#2 Dynamism vs Conventionalism

Root is more in the Vaughan mould, dynamic and instinctive

Alastair Cook was a conventional skipper, who stuck to the tried and tested methods of captaincy. His predecessor, Andrew Strauss was similar as well and helped England climb up the ladder in the ICC Test Rankings.

But Joe Root seems to be more in the Michael Vaughan's mould, dynamic and instinctive. His decision to bring himself on in Mumbai during the Test in the absence of Cook reaped rewards and he should stick to his style of captaincy.

Root has great flair and flamboyance in his batting. His style of leadership seems to be on similar lines and the England batsman would be better off sticking to his methods rather than try to do what Cook or Strauss did.

#1 Managing his senior players

Can Root manage the likes of senior players like Alastair Cook, who recently stepped down as skipper

A major challenge for any young captain is managing his senior players. MS Dhoni was an artist in this regard, rallying together men like Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and Rahul Dravid.

Root could take a leaf out of Dhoni's book of captaincy. He has the likes of James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Johnny Bairstow and the Alastair Cook in the side. Getting the best out of them along with making them a part of decision-making could be the way to go.

Whatever be the case, Root should handle a dynamic team with a mix of experience and youth in the right manner. His success could depend a lot on how he blends together this side. Thankfully, he has enough time before the South African series in June.