Joe 'strummer' Root performs Arctic Monkeys hit Mardy Bum on the ukulele 

  • England batsman Joe Root plays Mardy Bum on the ukulele 
  • The 23-year-old hails from Sheffield, as do Arctic Monkeys
  • England face Sri Lanka in the fifth ODI on Wednesday  

By Jack Gaughan for MailOnline

Published: 10:05 EST, 9 December 2014 | Updated: 11:04 EST, 9 December 2014

England spirits may need lifting at some point in the coming months. With a World Cup on the horizon in which they aren't expected to pull up any trees in, Alastair Cook will be intent on needing an easy pick-me-up.

And the skipper may just have found it, for Joe Root appears a dab hand at none other than the ukulele.

In his hotel before England's fifth one-day international against Sri Lanka on Wednesday, the Yorkshireman showcased his concealed talent in front of the ECB cameras.

Joe Root was videoed strumming along to Arctic Monkeys' Mardy Bum by the ECB website

Joe Root was videoed strumming along to Arctic Monkeys' Mardy Bum by the ECB website

The 23-year-old claims his ukulele skills are 'horrendous' and refuses to sing when playing 

The 23-year-old claims his ukulele skills are 'horrendous' and refuses to sing when playing 

Arctic Monkeys' Mardy Bum was the song of choice as Root strummed along to the tune made famous by the band who hail from his home city, Sheffield.

Cook may urge the 23-year-old to opt for something slightly more uplifting if he does indeed perform in front of the touring squad – but Root doesn't appear overly confident in his ability.

'I'm horrendous at it,' he said. 'I can't really sing, so I try to make sure I play loud enough so no one can hear that.

'It sounds horrendous at the minute. But I hope, one day, it might sound all right.'

What Root is more bullish about are England's chances of resurrecting the series against Angelo Mathews' side.

Arctic Monkeys (pictured at the NME awards in 2007) also hail from the Yorkshire city of Sheffield 

Arctic Monkeys (pictured at the NME awards in 2007) also hail from the Yorkshire city of Sheffield 

Root will be part of the England squad to face Sri Lanka in the fifth one-day international on Wednesday 

Root will be part of the England squad to face Sri Lanka in the fifth one-day international on Wednesday 

They trail 3-1 in the seven-match series, but the batsman sees this as a chance to show how they can perform under pressure.

'There's no reason why we can't,' he said. 'I think we showed in every game at some point that we're capable of doing that. Now we have to put it into one complete performance. Even the game we did win we weren't at our best, which is promising.

'But we don't want to talk about being promising all the time. Now is the time for us to step up and start putting in performances. This is a great opportunity for us to do it under pressure before a World Cup.'

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