The Telegraph Cricket Podcast · The Telegraph

Boycott meets Root to talk Ashes, Bazball and bats

·29 min·1 clip

Boycott says England have "focused too much on entertainment" and missed chances to win the Ashes and World Test Championship.

1. The Telegraph Cricket Podcast special pairs Sir Geoffrey Boycott with Joe Root to talk about the Ashes, Bazball and bats. 2. Nick Holt introduces the conversation at Sheffield Collegiate Cricket Club, where Boycott and Root appear as two England and Yorkshire batsmen with different eras. 3. The episode asks what England must do to win in Australia, and whether Root's batting, Boycott's methods, and pace bowling can align. 4. Boycott remembers Abbeydale Cricket Club for its "best lunches on the circuit," naming steak and kidney pie, cottage pie, beef Wellington and puddings. 5. Root recalls first meeting Boycott in Jersey when he was about 12 or 13 and had lost his kit on the way to an under-fifteens tournament. 6. Root explains how a growth spurt forced him to change his stance and crease position because he kept overbalancing. 7. Boycott says the technical change taught Root how to self-coach and recover from a rough first professional season. 8. Boycott talks about chest protectors, describing how West Indies fast bowlers like Holden, Roberts, Garner and Croft made him decide to add padding. 9. Root says the chest guard tradition moved through Yorkshire hands, from Michael Vaughan to him and then to Jofra Archer's bag for the 2019 Ashes. 10. Boycott argues England need Jofra Archer and Wood fit for Australia and says pace is "the ace." 11. Root says this tour feels different because he is not captain and England can attack Australia with "a completely different way" from the last two tours. 12. Boycott gives England a "40% chance" and tells players to bring their "A game" with no excuses. 13. Root says Australia will target him because he is "the best player," and Boycott agrees that opponents should go after the key batter. 14. Boycott says batting in Australia requires time, clear judgment and variety, not only aggressive shots. 15. Root says the reverse scoop is about using pace, watching the ball onto the bat and keeping the eyes level. 16. Boycott says modern bats are much bigger than the "two pound, four ounces" bats of his era and that "everything's changed." 17. The tone is conversational and direct, with Boycott giving blunt judgments and Root answering in measured, reflective detail. 18. The format alternates between cricket memory, technical batting talk and Ashes planning, without a studio-panel feel. 19. People interested in Ashes tactics, Yorkshire cricket and batting technique. 20. Listeners wanting entertainment-heavy sports chat with little cricket detail.

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