Joe Root is “coping well” with the pressure of captaining England and leading the batting line-up, says head coach Chris Silverwood.
Root made 64 and a superb 109 in the drawn opening Test against India at Trent Bridge, while no other England player managed more than 32.
Root has 1,064 Test runs this year, with Dan Lawrence the next best on 354.
“We need to make sure that the guys batting around him are coming to the party as well,” said Silverwood.
“They need to take the pressure off him.
“It’s my job to help him behind the scenes, take the pressure off and allow him to concentrate on his cricket on the pitch.”
Four days before the game Ben Stokes, England’s key all-rounder and Root’s vice-captain, withdrew from the series for mental health reasons. During the match England also confirmed pace bowler Jofra Archer will not play again this year because of an elbow injury.