Joe Root has "full support" of England team, Ben Stokes insists

England's Test captain has now fallen out of the top 10 of the ICC batting rankings having averaged just 27.40 from 20 innings since the start of 2019

England vice-captain Ben Stokes has insisted that Joe Root has his team's full backing despite the captain's ongoing struggles with the bat at Test level.

Root has averaged 27.40 runs during England's 10 Tests since the start of the year, including three ducks, five other single-figure scores, and a single century as his side gained a consolation victory over the West Indies in Saint Lucia in February.

The Yorkshireman's captaincy has been subject to question following England's innings defeat to New Zealand in the opening Test of their winter programme, but his deputy has insisted the squad is fully behind him ahead of the series decider in Hamilton, which begins tomorrow night.

"He knows that he's got the backing of everyone in the changing room. You know, that's the most important thing to him as captain and to us as players in general," Stokes told Test Match Special.

"The only thing that matters is the changing room vibe, really. Anything outside of that is just noise.

"He is England captain, he is England's best player, and he knows that he's got the full support of us in the changing room.

"The pressure of being England's Test captain is huge. It can be the most criticised job in England at times.

"It's sometimes unfair, I would say – there's 11 guys out on the field in a game that contributes to a win or loss, it doesn't all fall on the captain, you know.

"We put our hands up as players when we don't perform as well, and unfortunately Joe cops most of that, but us as a playing group we stick together and we hold our hands up together as well."

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With two Tests remaining in 2019, Root's tally of 548 runs is the fewest he has managed in a calendar year since 2014, in which he returned 777 runs at 97.12 in seven matches after being dropped in favour of Yorkshire teammate Gary Ballance ahead of the final game of the Ashes tour.

Ahead of this series, Root had been backed by Ashley Giles to be the man to lead the Test side into their next trip to Australia in two years' time.

Speaking on a Test Match Special commentary stint during a fixture against New Zealand A earlier this month, England's managing director of men's cricket described the series as the "holy grail" for Root and newly-installed head coach Chris Silverwood to build towards.

After being dismissed twice for 13 runs in the Mount Maunganui Test, including edging a bouncer from Colin de Grandhomme to gully to be the first of New Zealand's six wickets on the final day, Root was keen to stress that the burdens of captaincy were not an excuse for his poor form.

"I'm working hard. You have to go through a bit of a dip. The fact I'm captain, it's an easy excuse to use," he said.

"I'm going to have to keep trusting my game because I've got a lot in the bank. I must not overthink things and just try to find that rhythm which allows me to get my innings off and running."

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