Root ‘desperate’ to play in Ashes but won’t commit yet

LONDON: England captain Joe Root says he is “desperate” to play in the Ashes but cannot yet commit to tour Australia due to uncertainty over coronavirus protocols.

Players and team management have yet to learn the exact conditions under which the five-Test series will take place, with those who have young families particularly concerned about the potentially stringent rules.

Talks between the England and Wales Cricket Board and their counterparts at Cricket Australia are ongoing and it is hoped a specific set of plans could be in place ahead of a squad announcement next week.

Root, who has two young children, refused to say if he would be available to lead England’s bid to regain the Ashes in a series scheduled to start in Brisbane on December 8.

“I feel it’s so hard to make a definite decision until you know,” Root said on Tuesday. “It’s a little bit frustrating but it’s where we are at.

“From a player’s point of view we just want to know what the position is and then we can make decisions.”

The 30-year-old, named the Professional Cricketers’ Association men’s player of the year, added: “I’m desperate to be part of an Ashes series. I always am. It’s that one series as an England player that you want to be involved in and that will never change.