‘Make Test cricket the priority,’ urges Joe Root as he assesses ‘exciting list of England coaching candidates

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Joe Root has urged the ECB to make Test cricket the priority as they look to close in on the appointment of a new coach.

Root, England’s Test captain, is not directly involved in the process of appointing Trevor Bayliss’ successor, with that task falling to director of cricket Ashley Giles.

He has had the chance to run the rule over some candidates, though, with Gary Kirsten believed to be the favourite, and he likes what he sees.

“I’ve been made aware of who has been going in for interview and some of those candidates are really exciting,” Root said.

“You look at the list and I’m thrilled with the names involved.

“There’s a lot of noise around certain individuals but the group have all done special things and could bring good things to English cricket.

“Ashley has got an exciting but difficult decision to make. That’s not my pay grade.

“The sooner the better but ultimately I think Ash is just desperate to make the right decision.

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“One thing you always want from a new coach is a bit of energy and a slightly different way of going about things.

“Trevor did a brilliant job managing English cricket but I’m sure whoever comes in will want to put their stamp on it quite early.

“Personally I’m looking forward to Test cricket being slightly more of a priority than it has been for the past few years.”

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