Billy Root: Dedicated, resilient and reverse-sweeps

The Glamorgan batsman talks to ED KRARUP about his time at Worksop College, where he would swap French lessons for an education in the art of run-scoring

Billy Root is sat on a deckchair in the sun teaching himself how to play the guitar. The Glamorgan batsman was meant to be in final preparations for the Championship opener against Middlesex, but the situation that cricket finds itself in needs no further explanation.

For the time-being, Smoke on the Water will have to do.

The 27-year-old is using this lack of cricket as an opportunity to reflect on the journey that has brought him to Sophia Gardens, via Yorkshire, Leeds Met University and Nottinghamshire. It hasn’t been the most direct path and periods have been tough but runs in both first-class and List A cricket in 2019, including a career-best 229 against Northants, have given Root the perfect platform to build on when cricket does resume.

This is a cricketer with dedication and resilience, traits that he has shown ever since his school days at Worksop College in Nottinghamshire.

“I would often have a batting session instead of French lessons.” Root told The Cricketer. “And when I was higher up in the school, instead of doing Combined Cadet Force I would have another hour and a half of nets.”

Worksop run a strong sports programme and have repeatedly been named as one of the top 100 cricketing senior schools in The Cricketer Schools Guide.

Root arrived aged 13 and immediately made an impression while playing for the under-14 side. Before the end of his first year he was promoted to the school 1st XI squad, initially as a leg-spinner.

“It was quite daunting because I was basically playing against men. I bowled OK but it was a big step and I was so small and young. Being a leg-spinner I took a bit of a hit.

“But my brother, Joe, was in the side already and it was nice to have him around. However, he also had his struggles at the time. He was being recognised as a really good player at Yorkshire so he had a reputation at school. But he went through a growth spurt which affected his legs, meaning he was comfortable when facing faster, more accurate bowling at Yorkshire but against school opposition he would get pinned lbw.”

^{Playing his trademark reverse-sweep, a skill perfected during his school days at Worksop}

The development pathways in cricket are quite unique when compared to other sports, as most players will mainly represent their school or club during their teenage years, rather than being whisked away by a professional team, as happens in football.

And that places great importance on the school, to recognise talented players and give them the best opportunity to make it in the professional game.

For Root’s entire school career, the Worksop side was coached by Allan Kettleborough, father of ex-Yorkshire player and current ICC umpire Richard – who also attended Worksop, and Ian Parkin.

Both were hugely influential on Root’s game and his subsequent career path. Parkin was also his tutor, guiding Root through academic endeavours as well as sporting.

“They had a brilliant dynamic.” Root reminisced. “Ian was mid-30s but thought he was 18 and Allan was telling everyone to bat like Geoffrey Boycott.

“Some things you would take from Ian and others from Allan. If you played a reverse sweep Allan would be telling you off while Ian thought it was great to see and loved it. It was good to be able to express yourself and be backed by your coaches.”

Having joined the 1st XI squad as a lower order leg-spinner, Root started to work his way up the order and eventually took Joe’s position at No.3, after he had left Worksop to pursue cricket full-time. It was with this added responsibility that Root really flourished with willow in hand.

“I learnt the meaning of scoring hundreds. I found a way to be ruthless once I was in so I could go on to hit a massive score. It is also a mental battle, to be in for so long and to keep getting big scores for the team.

“We were so lucky that we had a batsman’s paradise as a wicket, one of the best I have ever played on. It was white and looked like a Test pitch for the entire season.”

^{Root in action for Glamorgan in 2019}

Root made the most of all the sporting opportunities Worksop had to offer. He played 1st XI hockey for four years, another outstanding achievement and a sign of just how highly regarded Root was as an allround sportsman.

“A big weapon of mine was the reverse hit,” explained the left-handed batter. “Because you play hockey right-handed it felt so natural to hit the ball on your reverse stick. When batting, reverse sweeping is a strength of mine which has probably come from playing lots of hockey.”

As ever with the Root family, though, it all comes back to cricket.

While Joe left school after completing his GCSEs, Billy chose to stay on at Worksop, to focus on exams and qualifications before fully throwing himself into the game after school.

He had already caught the eye of the Yorkshire academy, representing their under-17 side when school commitments didn’t intervene. The long journey from the Sherwood Forest to Headingley did not help, though.

After leaving Worksop, Yorkshire broke the news to him that opportunities would be limited, simply because they hadn’t seen enough of him.

Not deterred, Root trialled at Worcestershire and Leicestershire, as well as representing the MCC Young Cricketers and spending a winter in Australia. He was giving himself every chance of cracking the professional game.

^{Playing for Notts at Worksop College, his 'home' ground}

With the help of Parkin, Root enrolled at Leeds Met University where he represented Leeds/Bradford MCCU, a side he describes as “a great shop window”.

And the day Root was heading for his interview he received a call from Paul Franks offering him a trial at Nottinghamshire. Knowing how difficult the trial process is, Root accepted the invitation but decided to go ahead with university at the same time, furthering his options.

His performances for Leeds/Bradford and Notts landed Root a contract and then life as a first-class cricketer began.

Since then, Root has firmly established himself as a county player and enjoyed a productive first summer at Glamorgan last year.

But Worksop deserve a lot of credit for the player they have helped to produce, his five years at the school laying the foundations. The result is a hugely effective modern-day batsman with dedication and self-belief, all the right attributes to go far.

But for now, those talents are limited to the strings of his guitar.

The Cricketer would like to thank Durant Cricket for their ongoing support of our schools cricket coverage. For more on Durant Cricket, or to book a site visit, please click here

Subscribe to The Cricketer for exclusive content every day: The inside track on England's Test tour with George Dobell in Pakistan, award-winning analysis, breaking news and interviews and the only place for in-depth county coverage all year round. Plus: An ad-free app experience at your fingertips. Subscribe to thecricketer.com today for just £1.