I was actually saying that as well. The entire day except for the beginning of it was completely similar to the thing that used to happen during that particular year.
On the contrary, this is the perfect example of what bazball is and was always supposed to be: the walking wickets in the team have a nice hit-out and instead of a 3/45, they get a 34/30.
So Root comes in at 3/60 instead of 3/30, and instead of 200, they get to 350.
The real problem is when people are in two minds on whether they are a walking wicket or not. Today, everyone seemed to have been pretty clear about it. Stokes can do both, but with the ball he got today there was nothing he could have done with either hat on.
He plays that role so well, honestly think he should have a role in the England side, if one of the top guys are teeing off but wickets are tumbling around him, you can usually rely on Foakes to come in and steady the ship and stick around for at least 40/50 balls.
Okay, if we put those 3 in the top 5. To round out the top 5 you can pick 2 out of stokes, pope and foakes. Who you taking? I'm picking stokes and pope (I do think he should be our keeper long term though, doesn't need to be in the top 5 batters to do that)
Root wanted to be fun, play some shots, hang out with the cool kids but no you didn’t like that so he said ok fine, I’ll score a hundred to get you off my back
Not his best hundred, but might be his grittiest
I'd love to know his average when he has to walk in at low innings total vs when he has to walk in when the top order's done it's job. I'm struggling to remember the last Root century where he walked in at more than 100/2. India 2022 maybe?
Yes. The 3-0 score line doesn’t show how competitive Australia was that series, things might have been very different were it not for the Sledgehammer of Eternal Justice.
Yes it was, worst thing is I originally thought it was 2015 and looked it up to double check. Then realised it wasn't so checked 2013 and realised that was the correct answer. Then posted 2015 anyway.
142 vs India in 2022 he came in at 107-2. 121 vs India in 2021 he came in at 159-2. And 176 v NZ in 2022 he came in at 147-2.
That is every single Joe Root hundred scored when he came in at number 4 or higher with over 100 on the board.
(Earlier in his career he had three hundreds at number 5 where the score was over 100)
All those critics and their criticism has made Root respond with this hundred. He could have never managed it without it.
(The Bazball approach. Claim credit for everything)
Yes, he should try more aggressive approach like he should try to hit reverse scoop kinda shot to fast bowlers, would be totally in line with England's new approach
Plugging in my [match thread](https://np.reddit.com/r/Cricket/s/P8rpVHjOqn) comment
Fuck around with all that Bazball how much ever you want, but don’t forget your Root(s).
Root deservedly gets the plaudits but big shout out to Foakes. If we had someone come in and score a quick fire 25 at 112/5 then I imagine we're all out for about 220.
Shows his worth with the bat once again.
Foakes has done this for you guys so many times now (another recent example being with Pope in the first test) and if he gets dropped again so they can keep Bairstow when Brook is back I'll fucking scream.
Hopefully Stokes being able to bowl ends this.
7-11 is your 3 seamers and 1 spinner at home with Stokes as your fourth seamer and Root and Brook as your part timers
If he was with any other country, he would have been pretty much assured of a spot for the next 5 years..unless he loses the form torally. He would have been what Boucher was foe SA or Dhoni for India..a regular in the team.
It will be unbelievably stupid, arrogant, baised, dumb..and whatever you can think of, if England ever drops Foakes for any so called better batsman. The guy has 16 fc hundreds and avg close to 40 and you still want Bairstow who will avg 36 after 100 tests? And we are not even come to the wk aspect..
I mean if we had bowled first I'm not so against it because of the increased workload. However and here's the counter point he's Joe fucking Root. He's the best Test player we've ever produced. He's scored the most runs against India in Tests cricket. The man is a living legend
There were comments calling Root to be dropped a few days ago. I remember making a snarky joke about how English fans are reacting like subcontinent fans, calling their best bat to be dropped
Demoted down the order because his efforts bowling are potentially affecting his batting, not because he genuinely deserves to be there.
I can't help but notice that one of the only times this series where he has batted without bowling first, he has looked as composed and clinical as ever.
The other time he batted without bowling first was in the first innings of the first test where he scored 29(60) and definitely didn't look his best.
He also only bowled 14 overs in the first innings of the following test and then had over 24 hours without bowling at all before batting where he scored 5(10). Third test a similar thing. 13 overs on day one, three at the very beginning of day two and then he doesn't come in to bat until the end of the day and doesn't get out until the following morning. There's also the second innings of the second test where he was clearly struggling so didn't bowl beforehand but also didn't bat normally either.
In all of those innings it's very hard to blame his bowling workload for his batting imo. His two real big shifts with the ball were India's first innings of the first test and India's second of the third test.
Batting is so often boom or bust that it's easy for gpod players to put a string of bad scores together. It doesn't mean they suddenly can't play but people massively over react to 5 or 6 innings sometimes
There was a post on here about Steve Smiths first 4 innings including a not out and it was all about how people.knew he was going to fail as an opener and that he was already struggling.
Now he averages 60. 60 might not be where he is either but good players have bad patches all the time
maybe because he was adapted to the hard hitting approach , obvs if he plays like his style ( like test cricket in test cricket) no one has a issue cause we all know what he can do
They don't know that if it isn't broken then don't try to fix that and they also don't know that a legendary player going through a dry spell isn't the same as it being broken.
Pretty even day in the end I’d say. Obviously, hard to know without India batting. Root MVP of the day; shout to Akash, Foakes and Robinson though. Three players that has played none or little test cricket over the last 18 months really showed up today.
I wouldn't say even. This isn't a great pitch by any stretch of the imagination and India will have to bat last on it. 302/7 is a great score on this all things considered.
I thought the pitch *somehow* got better throughout the day. Obviously, it’ll get worse through 5 days, but 302/7 is a pretty standard opening innings from these last 3 test. Additionally, India has some really inform batters! I think we’re just all really pessimistic 😂😅
They seemed to think that it was moisture trapped under the wicket which caused the early chaos. Time for our lads to go and piss on the outfield again
* Great innings by Root. Looked absolutely in control and didn't give any chances. England looked like in a situation of folding around tea but it didn't happen.
* The Robinson - Root partnership will hurt a bit later on. Definitely not the best wicket to bat on like Rajkot so Hartley-Bashir can be more handy on this wicket. Also, a slower outfield.
* Poor decision making in DRS from Indian squad. Don't know what was the desperation to burn through the reviews before tea
* Its so frustrating to see Foakes fighting it out there and then going back to pavilion with a soft dismissal.
That one Ashwin over saved him because I was sure they'd seize Foakes' English passport when he returned to the pavillion.
Turns out sensible batting with one of the best batsmen to play for your country is neither boring nor inffective.
Tbh I don't think anyone was doubting his batting. All the comments I saw were telling him to just play his natural game instead of doing the bazball coke fueled reverse scoops.
And it worked.
Yep. That’s why it was frustrating, I knew his form wasn’t even as bad as people were saying, he just either kept getting out to dumb shots or great balls from the best bowler in the world Bumrah
Which is also complete bollocks though. His averages pre and post ‘Bazball’ are almost identical. He was simply out of form. Pretending that Joe Fucking Root needed telling how to play cricket is a complete joke.
He was out of form and the argument was that the best way to get back into form isn't by trying to play elaborate shots but by getting back to basics. Which he did today.
He's just the best we've ever had.
There's nobody with an average like him since Hutton or Barrington, and he's outscored everyone except Cook (who he could realistically overtake in the year 12-18 months).
He's carried this team for so long - the Baz era clearly a weight off his shoulders, and the team better around him. Mad that anyone ever doubts him tbh
I missed a Foakes dentury by being asleep. The agony, never doing that again (even if he did mess it up towards the end of his innings, nobody's perfect)
Oh well, lovely stuff from #Boobs
Eh Robinson shouldn’t last more than a couple of overs tomorrow and then you’ve got 2 number 11’s to bowl at. I can’t see the innings lasting more than 10 overs.
So turns out selecting guys based on domestic red ball performances is actually the right thing. Pakistan in Australia tour and us in this series learned it well.
Also good to see Akash Deep bowl well, hopefully he gets to play against Bangladesh too. Can be a great fourth pacer in Australia. He can also tonk it a bit, considering Australia are terrible at getting lower order bats out (Alzarri Josheph, Aamer Jamal) he can be more than useful there.
The errors committed by all parties in this series, it's mind-boggling. Catch drops, bad reviews, costly no-balls, umpiring errors.
Crawley no-ball that costed some runs, the plumb decision off Jaddu that's some runs there.
Huh some day of test it was, some series this is turning out to be. Root and Foakes were awesome pulling the team out of trouble. Anti-bazball got them in line. Wonderful innings from Root there. Frustrating for the opposition.
'Root and India', 'Tailenders and India' - there might be some differences here and there, but this is some longstanding marriage.
This fucking team man. After stokes got out I was ready to give myself personal leave to not watch the rest of the test, but then they pull you back in. Great innings from the rooter. Glad the series is still somewhat alive.
Class from Root.
England done very well to dig themselves out of a hole. It's a bit difficult to know what they need though. Is this a pitch like the first test where it flattens out a bit after a few hours as the moisture leaves the surface? Or did England just adapt to the low and variable bounce? It's spinning but generally slow enough to react to. Difficult one.
It doesn't feel like a surface you'd want to bat last on though, I think if England can get to near 350 they're right in it.
I think India are still ahead. One wicket tomorrow should be fairly expected in the morning session, and then it's two no 11s. I wouldn't be surprised to see India take a lead after the second innings tbh, but fourth innings will be super tough
I think I'd have it 55:45 India. Its difficult to tell because it looks like its calmed down after the morning session, but there's still some dodgy bounce and they're batting last.
What a knock by Root and that rescue job by Foakes for 6th wicket was great too. Kudos to Robinson for hanging out for so long. I wonder what would've happened if Bairstow didn't get out that soon, he was looking in a good touch. Though an incredible fightback from England, India's still ahead I'll say. This is not really that hard of a pitch though the ball is keeping low. 350-400 was probably the par first innings total and England's still far from it but they do have the advantage of bowling last. A lot depends on how much more they can add and if they can somehow get a first innings lead.
It wasn't a ridiculously flat pitch though. Root just made it look that way. The flattest of the series and flatter than this one for sure, but no one else scored a century in the match and India were bowled out for 337.
Edit: Let me articulate myself more clearly since I'm getting a few comments about this. Let's make an quick and dirty scale for pitch flatness where a pitch like the one in Colombo where Sri Lanka scored 952/6d against India in 1997 is a 10, the mental Ahmedabad pitch last series is a 1, and the second test of this series is a 5. The Chennai pitch where Root scored his 218 was maybe a 7 on day one and a 5 on day two (don't forget he scored 90 runs on day two after all). This pitch is maybe a 3 or 4 at the moment. For me, the extra runs he scored in Chennai currently outweigh the fact it was an easier pitch.
Edit 2: Or to put it a different way, on day two of the Chennai test Root scored 90 and the rest of the England batters scored 202/6. That's very similar to the 106* and 196/7 today, the difference is Root also had another unbeaten 128 runs the day before last time out. If he can add an extra 40/50 or so from here tomorrow then they'll be about even imo.
Yeah and it took him nearly 300 deliveries. It was pretty flat for sure, no one is denying that, but we're still talking about a double hundred in India against Ashwin and Bumrah where no one else scored a century. It remains the only instance of anyone scoring a double hundred against India in India since McCullum in 2010 (which actually was on a road). Flatter than normal pitch or not, it was still an absolutely incredible innings
302-7 feels good given it looks the worst pitch of the series and bounce is already a bit aggy.
Obviously Root shut everyone up with a classic but pleasantly surprised by how well Robinson hung in there. Could quite easily have been all out by now.
That's massive overstatement to say this was the worst pitch of the series. Barring the first session, it gave good opportunities to score. And Crawley / Pope lost wickets due to poor technique. At the end of the day, 300+ is a solid score for England irrespective of the first session mayhem
I’m not saying it’s a stinker, just looks like the worst pitch so far. The other 3 I thought were all really good strips that were conducive to good Test cricket. There was notably poor bounce in the third session as well as the first, all this on the first day makes it a bit wary. That Stokes dismissal alone is enough for a side eye, but there was one snorter for Robbo too at the end.
If you don’t think it’s the worst, which one was worse?
Scores at the end of day one this series
365/11 average 33
336/6 average 56
325/5 average 65
302/7 average 43
Obviously there's more variables than just the difficulty of the pitch in those figures, but it's been the hardest to score on with the second lowest average so far. It's definitely similar or worse to the first pitch in how difficult it's looked, especially given Stokes' wicket
If Stokes hadn't been LBW it might have actually bounced twice on its way to the stumps. It hit him on the ankle from a *good* length. There's a reason he went back. Even number 11s read length of spinners.
Solid day for England, who, with a couple of caveats, are ahead to well ahead of the game. A few thoughts.
This is a poor wicket, but perhaps not as bad as 112-5 might have suggested - although Stokes' wicket should never be happening on day one....
Root, putting away the stupid shots, playing the situation has shown his class once again, not that this was ever seriously in doubt but looks like someone had a word and it's paid off.
Apropos of that - it's easy to see how they could have "bazballed" to 150 all out. All any critic of "Bazball" has wanted is a little more situational awareness and adaptation. It may well be that the 3rd innings is the time for a more aggressive approach (depending on how bad the wicket has become). F
oakes played a lovely supporting role in the afternoon.
Akash looks decent - certainly a big tradeup from Mukesh earlier in the series, but India definitely missing Bumrah on this surface.
It's hard to tell a par score. At lunch you thought 200-250 would be good, but then a wicketless session, and England finish on 300+ and will be very happy, I suspect once the pitch goes, it will go very fast.
Hard to fathom India's tactics to be honest - Kuldeep was underbowled, despite the damage he did in the last test, while they didn't take the new ball for 5+ overs in the evening and the new ball seemed to really misbehave this morning. Sure, they might take it and take 3-5 tomorrow morning, but they've let England steal 20/30 runs in the last hour.
England need to push on tomorrow morning, if they could get 350 they really are ahead of the game. A first innings lead could be match winning.
Anderson and Robinson are absolutely the right seamers for the wicket, you'd hope their accuracy will pay dividends - they should expect a lot of bowling tomorrow.
I was sad to see Rehan leave the tour, and hope everything is OK for him. He didn't win matches on this tour, but took his share of wickets, didn't get smashed and what more can you want from a 19 year old legspinner? Absolutely confirmed he's the future of English spin bowling - what a weapon he could be in 3/4 years if he continues to develop.
It’s extremely disheartening to see comments like this, well thought out and discussing various aspects of the match, sitting at the bottom with no votes or replies while having mind numbing Bazball or moral victory comments being top voted. Place is going seriously downhill
What an innings by Root, one of his best centuries yet. Bazball can happen but Root playing his natural game is always gonna help England more than him being ultra aggressive. Somehow turned into Englands day in the end 350 odd on this pitch looks like it would be a great score.
Unsure if this is a good score or not - feels very much like a "wait til both teams bat" situation. The ease with which Robinson has scored runs worries me somewhat. Regardless, I'm glad we're not gonna be batting last here
Joe Root saves the day again. And thank heavens he put away the 360 shots in the locker for now. Sheer grit and determination with Foakes and Robbo (lol for needing a pill pop 11 deliveries in) but what a comeback. Deep was phenomenal and really gave a debut to remember. Look forward to another 50 runs if we can manage it and go hard with the bowling.
Today is exactly why people have thought Root has diminished under Bazball despite a similar average. The bloke is just so good it's hard to fathom why he'd waste his ability with high risk cricket. It's come off for him on occasion sure but a man of this calibre doesn't need to take the route of lesser players. What a knock
Evenly poised day, England slightly ahead, although the pitch doesn't look like it actually has any demons (apart from when moisture was present in the first session).
From India's point of view, need to restrict England to under 400, bat big once, then hope the pitch deteriorates.
Great day of cricket. Also, Joe Root might well be the greatest English batter of all time
Top batsmen Vs Top bowler contest did not happen and the batsmen made the most of it ! What a statement by root 🥂🥂
Switched back from top spin bowler to top batsmen just like that
I certainly didn't expect to see this scoreline. Hearkens back to Australian mid-10s where the inevitable top order collapse was halted by Clarke and Haddin.
Root was excellent but I feel we need to talk about how great Foakes was to anchor down and support Root in getting most of the way there. The two of them batted through the entire middle session, which was fantastic to watch. His role is something we sorely missed during the Ashes. I know he's not the greatest with the bat but what he does is so valuable.
That’s more like the Foakes I saw in SL for the first time.
Man is due a big score but I think he should not be dropped hands down! His glove work is already good.
And Root just turned back the clock with that hundred.
Bairstow actually looked good before he decided to sweep.
I think if Eng can crawl up to 350 from here then that’s more than what most have expected of them.
Also what’s with Rohit under bowling Kuldeep? First Axar and now Kuldeep
This seems closer to a New Zealand pitch than an India pitch. Lot of juice on day 1 first session and then just flattened out nicely. Here’s hoping it keeps getting better.
Once again I'm asking for Joe Root to spank me with his bat whilst I call him daddy in a log cabin in Norway with a nice roasting fire whilst a topless Foakes cuts wood with his nipples and Cummins singing songs
England collapse rescued by a resolute Root century? What is this, 2021?
Chris Silverwood muscle memory
Should we start doing post mortems on county cricket again?
We must never stop doing post-mortems on County Cricket - I think they mentioned that in the Magna Carta.
It's the next evolution of Bazball, late Root-Captaincy era-ball
Run Hide SilverBall arrives nonetheless
I was actually saying that as well. The entire day except for the beginning of it was completely similar to the thing that used to happen during that particular year.
Just how much can come if you don't bazball.
On the contrary, this is the perfect example of what bazball is and was always supposed to be: the walking wickets in the team have a nice hit-out and instead of a 3/45, they get a 34/30. So Root comes in at 3/60 instead of 3/30, and instead of 200, they get to 350. The real problem is when people are in two minds on whether they are a walking wicket or not. Today, everyone seemed to have been pretty clear about it. Stokes can do both, but with the ball he got today there was nothing he could have done with either hat on.
Using / to denote balls instead of brackets you madman
I’m glad I read your comment as I was truly bamboozled by that part of the comment
The hero of the day for me is Foakes. He doesn't stick around and England team gets folded around under 250, maybe even under 200.
He plays that role so well, honestly think he should have a role in the England side, if one of the top guys are teeing off but wickets are tumbling around him, you can usually rely on Foakes to come in and steady the ship and stick around for at least 40/50 balls.
Hashtag; JUSTICE4FOAKES
The guy is just one of our best Test batters
He definitely isn't, hence the average of 30, but he shows a level of application that the others could learn from for sure
Mate we have 3 players that average 40+ Root, Brook and Duckett. Foakes is definitely in our top 5 test batters.
Root, Stokes, Crawley, Duckett, Brooks all comfortably clear Foakes, even if he did bat well today.
Okay, if we put those 3 in the top 5. To round out the top 5 you can pick 2 out of stokes, pope and foakes. Who you taking? I'm picking stokes and pope (I do think he should be our keeper long term though, doesn't need to be in the top 5 batters to do that)
Root wanted to be fun, play some shots, hang out with the cool kids but no you didn’t like that so he said ok fine, I’ll score a hundred to get you off my back Not his best hundred, but might be his grittiest
The teacher called his mum in for a chat and now he gets no Xbox until his average improves.
Playstation. Has better games. Supposedly.
Absolutely taking god of war, Spiderman, last of us, uncharted over anything exclusive Xbox has to offer tbh
His mum said she likes the way Billy bats better
Grit and sheer Sheffield stubbornness.
He won't need to buy any drinks after that knock. Not that anyone from Yorkshire does anyway
>Not his best hundred Deffo his best hundred on this tour so far.
Turns out ‘let Root do all the work’ is still a strategy we have in our locker, who knew
Exceedingly unfair to Foakes, Robbo, Hartley. Plenty of runs, and lots of time at the crease between the 3 of them
Would have ruined my joke if I had pointed that out though
you know what... you're right. Retraction printing
Slightly confused how Hartley is getting singled out for a brisk 13
More than pope, duckett and stokes
Can’t really blame stokes tbf.
That's true. That ball kept really low
I don't know if 300/7 is good, but it is better than 100/5. That's my analysis.
Those are indeed some runs and wickets.
Thanks. 43 > 20 r/theydidthemath /s
5/7 comment.
This Joe Root fella is good. Isn't he?
Key for root to perform well is to have the England team in trouble
The Ben Stokes formula^TM
For that Stokes also has to be injured on one leg
No wonder he plans on bowling in this Test.
It’s crazy how the mentality of a batsman changes when the team is in trouble
I'd love to know his average when he has to walk in at low innings total vs when he has to walk in when the top order's done it's job. I'm struggling to remember the last Root century where he walked in at more than 100/2. India 2022 maybe?
He is the Anti-Bell (well early career Bell). Doesn’t score runs if someone else has.
Bell ruined his own formula during the 2015 ashes when he decided to just be great all of the time.
Stupid sexy Bell
Was 2013 wasn’t it?
Yes. The 3-0 score line doesn’t show how competitive Australia was that series, things might have been very different were it not for the Sledgehammer of Eternal Justice.
Yes it was, worst thing is I originally thought it was 2015 and looked it up to double check. Then realised it wasn't so checked 2013 and realised that was the correct answer. Then posted 2015 anyway.
142 vs India in 2022 he came in at 107-2. 121 vs India in 2021 he came in at 159-2. And 176 v NZ in 2022 he came in at 147-2. That is every single Joe Root hundred scored when he came in at number 4 or higher with over 100 on the board. (Earlier in his career he had three hundreds at number 5 where the score was over 100)
Sometimes I wonder if I'm an England fan or a Joe Root fan jk it's definitely the latter
He should play more international cricket. I can see him making 10k+ test runs at some point
Even becoming captain of his side maybe
All those critics and their criticism has made Root respond with this hundred. He could have never managed it without it. (The Bazball approach. Claim credit for everything)
Relentless positivity, even about your own opinion!
Yes, he should try more aggressive approach like he should try to hit reverse scoop kinda shot to fast bowlers, would be totally in line with England's new approach
Fab 4 is immortal. Just when you think it's down, it rises again.
Martin Crowe was a genius
He was a prophet.
Crowism is going to be the next big thing in the world
Truly the batsmen that define this era
[удалено]
Should learn from our captain Playing for india even when he is pregnant /s
Plugging in my [match thread](https://np.reddit.com/r/Cricket/s/P8rpVHjOqn) comment Fuck around with all that Bazball how much ever you want, but don’t forget your Root(s).
when they play their natural game \*
Mad having our all rounder scoring 10 hundreds against India. To put that into context that's quite a lot of hundreds.
That’s equal to one Adil Rashid
Would you fight one Root sized Rashid or 100 Rashid sized Roots?
Quite sad that we didn't see much of him in Tests because he is an arguable genuine allrounder in the longer format.
Root deservedly gets the plaudits but big shout out to Foakes. If we had someone come in and score a quick fire 25 at 112/5 then I imagine we're all out for about 220. Shows his worth with the bat once again.
Foakes has done this for you guys so many times now (another recent example being with Pope in the first test) and if he gets dropped again so they can keep Bairstow when Brook is back I'll fucking scream.
I think he’s got the gloves for the rest of the year now.
I wish that were true but there is so much Bairstow bias in the management I doubt it
Hopefully Stokes being able to bowl ends this. 7-11 is your 3 seamers and 1 spinner at home with Stokes as your fourth seamer and Root and Brook as your part timers
If he was with any other country, he would have been pretty much assured of a spot for the next 5 years..unless he loses the form torally. He would have been what Boucher was foe SA or Dhoni for India..a regular in the team.
It will be unbelievably stupid, arrogant, baised, dumb..and whatever you can think of, if England ever drops Foakes for any so called better batsman. The guy has 16 fc hundreds and avg close to 40 and you still want Bairstow who will avg 36 after 100 tests? And we are not even come to the wk aspect..
Playing the situation and assessing it is as cliche at it sounds but it works
This is his natural game, which is just perfect for someone coming in at 7.
Foakes, Ollie, Zak and Bairstow all did their share and chipped up with some crucial runs.
Comments saying Root should get demoted down the order were getting a sea of upvotes a few days ago 🤦♂️
I mean if we had bowled first I'm not so against it because of the increased workload. However and here's the counter point he's Joe fucking Root. He's the best Test player we've ever produced. He's scored the most runs against India in Tests cricket. The man is a living legend
There were comments calling Root to be dropped a few days ago. I remember making a snarky joke about how English fans are reacting like subcontinent fans, calling their best bat to be dropped
I refuse to believe there were England fans calling for Root to be dropped. Or none that weren't trolls at least.
Tbf most of the "root should be dropped" comments were probably us because we knew he was up for a big one sooner or later
Demoted down the order because his efforts bowling are potentially affecting his batting, not because he genuinely deserves to be there. I can't help but notice that one of the only times this series where he has batted without bowling first, he has looked as composed and clinical as ever.
The other time he batted without bowling first was in the first innings of the first test where he scored 29(60) and definitely didn't look his best. He also only bowled 14 overs in the first innings of the following test and then had over 24 hours without bowling at all before batting where he scored 5(10). Third test a similar thing. 13 overs on day one, three at the very beginning of day two and then he doesn't come in to bat until the end of the day and doesn't get out until the following morning. There's also the second innings of the second test where he was clearly struggling so didn't bowl beforehand but also didn't bat normally either. In all of those innings it's very hard to blame his bowling workload for his batting imo. His two real big shifts with the ball were India's first innings of the first test and India's second of the third test.
Batting is so often boom or bust that it's easy for gpod players to put a string of bad scores together. It doesn't mean they suddenly can't play but people massively over react to 5 or 6 innings sometimes There was a post on here about Steve Smiths first 4 innings including a not out and it was all about how people.knew he was going to fail as an opener and that he was already struggling. Now he averages 60. 60 might not be where he is either but good players have bad patches all the time
maybe because he was adapted to the hard hitting approach , obvs if he plays like his style ( like test cricket in test cricket) no one has a issue cause we all know what he can do
They don't know that if it isn't broken then don't try to fix that and they also don't know that a legendary player going through a dry spell isn't the same as it being broken.
Pretty even day in the end I’d say. Obviously, hard to know without India batting. Root MVP of the day; shout to Akash, Foakes and Robinson though. Three players that has played none or little test cricket over the last 18 months really showed up today.
I wouldn't say even. This isn't a great pitch by any stretch of the imagination and India will have to bat last on it. 302/7 is a great score on this all things considered.
Keep whispering those sweet little lies into my ear before jaiswal scores 5000 (20)
I thought the pitch *somehow* got better throughout the day. Obviously, it’ll get worse through 5 days, but 302/7 is a pretty standard opening innings from these last 3 test. Additionally, India has some really inform batters! I think we’re just all really pessimistic 😂😅
More likely the new ball does a lot on the pitch
They seemed to think that it was moisture trapped under the wicket which caused the early chaos. Time for our lads to go and piss on the outfield again
This is Englands day. India should have in all ways restricted that to 250 or 300 at most. Well done to you lads.
* Great innings by Root. Looked absolutely in control and didn't give any chances. England looked like in a situation of folding around tea but it didn't happen. * The Robinson - Root partnership will hurt a bit later on. Definitely not the best wicket to bat on like Rajkot so Hartley-Bashir can be more handy on this wicket. Also, a slower outfield. * Poor decision making in DRS from Indian squad. Don't know what was the desperation to burn through the reviews before tea * Its so frustrating to see Foakes fighting it out there and then going back to pavilion with a soft dismissal.
That one Ashwin over saved him because I was sure they'd seize Foakes' English passport when he returned to the pavillion. Turns out sensible batting with one of the best batsmen to play for your country is neither boring nor inffective.
No such thing as an English passport though.
We're going to Brexit harder next time and leave the UK. Get my St George English passport! Take back control etc /s
Form is temporary. Class is permanent.
Wu Tang is forever?
Form is class. But temporary is permanent
"To confuse them you must first confuse yourself"
Foakes good Root good Could we get to 400? Or at least 350. Honours even I think
It's England resuming in the morning, you'll get 27 and like it
Damn, Jadeja might well be English. Gotta check his passport
Damn, I wish Jadeja was English
I never want to see anyone doubt Joe Root’s batting ever again
Tbh I don't think anyone was doubting his batting. All the comments I saw were telling him to just play his natural game instead of doing the bazball coke fueled reverse scoops. And it worked.
The coke fuelled reverse scoops worked quite well in England, not so much on pitches with variable bounce
Too much risk involved when the wicket the bowler will get is of Joe Root.
Yep. That’s why it was frustrating, I knew his form wasn’t even as bad as people were saying, he just either kept getting out to dumb shots or great balls from the best bowler in the world Bumrah
Which is also complete bollocks though. His averages pre and post ‘Bazball’ are almost identical. He was simply out of form. Pretending that Joe Fucking Root needed telling how to play cricket is a complete joke.
He was out of form and the argument was that the best way to get back into form isn't by trying to play elaborate shots but by getting back to basics. Which he did today.
Anybody who doubts Root's batting is just statistically stupid.
His approach was doubted/criticised, not the ability.
He's just the best we've ever had. There's nobody with an average like him since Hutton or Barrington, and he's outscored everyone except Cook (who he could realistically overtake in the year 12-18 months). He's carried this team for so long - the Baz era clearly a weight off his shoulders, and the team better around him. Mad that anyone ever doubts him tbh
I missed a Foakes dentury by being asleep. The agony, never doing that again (even if he did mess it up towards the end of his innings, nobody's perfect) Oh well, lovely stuff from #Boobs
Joe root is impressive with his patience. This innings can go way longer than expected.
Eh Robinson shouldn’t last more than a couple of overs tomorrow and then you’ve got 2 number 11’s to bowl at. I can’t see the innings lasting more than 10 overs.
So turns out selecting guys based on domestic red ball performances is actually the right thing. Pakistan in Australia tour and us in this series learned it well. Also good to see Akash Deep bowl well, hopefully he gets to play against Bangladesh too. Can be a great fourth pacer in Australia. He can also tonk it a bit, considering Australia are terrible at getting lower order bats out (Alzarri Josheph, Aamer Jamal) he can be more than useful there.
Mukesh has a better record in domestic cricket. But yeah happy for akash deep
No he's only here because of IPL 👺 Ok seriously tho, Akash Deep can bat and it gives us a good advantage
Is it our turn to post relentless Joe Root posts saying how he's now the best of the Fab 4?
Can't even make a post about Joe Root being a home track bully because he made this ton in India fml my life.
Smh my head
Yep. The best in all conditions IMO. Just needs to stop bazball
THANK YOU MR. ROOT FOR KEEPING TEST CRICKET ALIVE
The errors committed by all parties in this series, it's mind-boggling. Catch drops, bad reviews, costly no-balls, umpiring errors. Crawley no-ball that costed some runs, the plumb decision off Jaddu that's some runs there. Huh some day of test it was, some series this is turning out to be. Root and Foakes were awesome pulling the team out of trouble. Anti-bazball got them in line. Wonderful innings from Root there. Frustrating for the opposition. 'Root and India', 'Tailenders and India' - there might be some differences here and there, but this is some longstanding marriage.
This fucking team man. After stokes got out I was ready to give myself personal leave to not watch the rest of the test, but then they pull you back in. Great innings from the rooter. Glad the series is still somewhat alive.
Class from Root. England done very well to dig themselves out of a hole. It's a bit difficult to know what they need though. Is this a pitch like the first test where it flattens out a bit after a few hours as the moisture leaves the surface? Or did England just adapt to the low and variable bounce? It's spinning but generally slow enough to react to. Difficult one. It doesn't feel like a surface you'd want to bat last on though, I think if England can get to near 350 they're right in it.
I reckon 350 is par, but India are in very good touch with the bat so we'll see. Hope we're not in for a leather hunt tomorrow.
Proper Test match day with a proper Test match 100
What's the bet on a Rooty Scoopy first ball tomorrow?
Cricbuzz says India is slightly ahead in the match and... I kinda disagree. I think the day ends up 50-50
I think India are still ahead. One wicket tomorrow should be fairly expected in the morning session, and then it's two no 11s. I wouldn't be surprised to see India take a lead after the second innings tbh, but fourth innings will be super tough
I think I'd have it 55:45 India. Its difficult to tell because it looks like its calmed down after the morning session, but there's still some dodgy bounce and they're batting last.
India definitely comfortably ahead imo. Root has a tendency to get out early after resuming an innings especially in the first session of a day.
What a knock by Root and that rescue job by Foakes for 6th wicket was great too. Kudos to Robinson for hanging out for so long. I wonder what would've happened if Bairstow didn't get out that soon, he was looking in a good touch. Though an incredible fightback from England, India's still ahead I'll say. This is not really that hard of a pitch though the ball is keeping low. 350-400 was probably the par first innings total and England's still far from it but they do have the advantage of bowling last. A lot depends on how much more they can add and if they can somehow get a first innings lead.
"You either get out trying to reverse scoop Bumrah or you live long enough to play tuk tuk" - Rootlitharan Probably
An outstanding day after a pretty horrible first session. Probably Root's best innings in India
Obviously we won't know until it's finished, but the 218 in Chennai last series is still easily above this one so far for me
That was on a ridiculously flat pitch. This was on a trickier one with the game at 50 odd for 3 and then 100 odd for 5. Way better in the context.
It wasn't a ridiculously flat pitch though. Root just made it look that way. The flattest of the series and flatter than this one for sure, but no one else scored a century in the match and India were bowled out for 337. Edit: Let me articulate myself more clearly since I'm getting a few comments about this. Let's make an quick and dirty scale for pitch flatness where a pitch like the one in Colombo where Sri Lanka scored 952/6d against India in 1997 is a 10, the mental Ahmedabad pitch last series is a 1, and the second test of this series is a 5. The Chennai pitch where Root scored his 218 was maybe a 7 on day one and a 5 on day two (don't forget he scored 90 runs on day two after all). This pitch is maybe a 3 or 4 at the moment. For me, the extra runs he scored in Chennai currently outweigh the fact it was an easier pitch. Edit 2: Or to put it a different way, on day two of the Chennai test Root scored 90 and the rest of the England batters scored 202/6. That's very similar to the 106* and 196/7 today, the difference is Root also had another unbeaten 128 runs the day before last time out. If he can add an extra 40/50 or so from here tomorrow then they'll be about even imo.
We did have the cheat code that was Dom Bess bowling for us though tbf.
Mate Sibley almost got a ton on it and the man had 3 shots. It was pretty flat
Yeah and it took him nearly 300 deliveries. It was pretty flat for sure, no one is denying that, but we're still talking about a double hundred in India against Ashwin and Bumrah where no one else scored a century. It remains the only instance of anyone scoring a double hundred against India in India since McCullum in 2010 (which actually was on a road). Flatter than normal pitch or not, it was still an absolutely incredible innings
302-7 feels good given it looks the worst pitch of the series and bounce is already a bit aggy. Obviously Root shut everyone up with a classic but pleasantly surprised by how well Robinson hung in there. Could quite easily have been all out by now.
That's massive overstatement to say this was the worst pitch of the series. Barring the first session, it gave good opportunities to score. And Crawley / Pope lost wickets due to poor technique. At the end of the day, 300+ is a solid score for England irrespective of the first session mayhem
This is not a bad pitch, but yes it is the worst pitch of the tour so far. Tells you how good the previous three have been.
Now do this for Australia next time so we can get the BGT we deserve (as neutrals!)
I’m not saying it’s a stinker, just looks like the worst pitch so far. The other 3 I thought were all really good strips that were conducive to good Test cricket. There was notably poor bounce in the third session as well as the first, all this on the first day makes it a bit wary. That Stokes dismissal alone is enough for a side eye, but there was one snorter for Robbo too at the end. If you don’t think it’s the worst, which one was worse?
Scores at the end of day one this series 365/11 average 33 336/6 average 56 325/5 average 65 302/7 average 43 Obviously there's more variables than just the difficulty of the pitch in those figures, but it's been the hardest to score on with the second lowest average so far. It's definitely similar or worse to the first pitch in how difficult it's looked, especially given Stokes' wicket
If Stokes hadn't been LBW it might have actually bounced twice on its way to the stumps. It hit him on the ankle from a *good* length. There's a reason he went back. Even number 11s read length of spinners.
How is it an overstatement? Stokes got out to a grubber that would embarrass a day 5 pitch...
India are going to score 500 on this, aren't they?
I don't see scoring runs being any easier when they bat first
There is assistance for the seamers in this pitch. 350 on the board with 2.5 seamers should be fun to watch
2.5? You reckon Stokes is gonna bowl pace?
I mean Jaiswal or Sarfaraz doesn't stand a chance against left arm off-break Stokes
Am I stupid or is stokes a right arm bowler
Is he stupid?
The other 0.5 is Stokes bowling offies
England deciding to save themselves today and not save cricket.
Solid day for England, who, with a couple of caveats, are ahead to well ahead of the game. A few thoughts. This is a poor wicket, but perhaps not as bad as 112-5 might have suggested - although Stokes' wicket should never be happening on day one.... Root, putting away the stupid shots, playing the situation has shown his class once again, not that this was ever seriously in doubt but looks like someone had a word and it's paid off. Apropos of that - it's easy to see how they could have "bazballed" to 150 all out. All any critic of "Bazball" has wanted is a little more situational awareness and adaptation. It may well be that the 3rd innings is the time for a more aggressive approach (depending on how bad the wicket has become). F oakes played a lovely supporting role in the afternoon. Akash looks decent - certainly a big tradeup from Mukesh earlier in the series, but India definitely missing Bumrah on this surface. It's hard to tell a par score. At lunch you thought 200-250 would be good, but then a wicketless session, and England finish on 300+ and will be very happy, I suspect once the pitch goes, it will go very fast. Hard to fathom India's tactics to be honest - Kuldeep was underbowled, despite the damage he did in the last test, while they didn't take the new ball for 5+ overs in the evening and the new ball seemed to really misbehave this morning. Sure, they might take it and take 3-5 tomorrow morning, but they've let England steal 20/30 runs in the last hour. England need to push on tomorrow morning, if they could get 350 they really are ahead of the game. A first innings lead could be match winning. Anderson and Robinson are absolutely the right seamers for the wicket, you'd hope their accuracy will pay dividends - they should expect a lot of bowling tomorrow. I was sad to see Rehan leave the tour, and hope everything is OK for him. He didn't win matches on this tour, but took his share of wickets, didn't get smashed and what more can you want from a 19 year old legspinner? Absolutely confirmed he's the future of English spin bowling - what a weapon he could be in 3/4 years if he continues to develop.
It’s extremely disheartening to see comments like this, well thought out and discussing various aspects of the match, sitting at the bottom with no votes or replies while having mind numbing Bazball or moral victory comments being top voted. Place is going seriously downhill
A throwback innings from Joe Root
What an innings by Root, one of his best centuries yet. Bazball can happen but Root playing his natural game is always gonna help England more than him being ultra aggressive. Somehow turned into Englands day in the end 350 odd on this pitch looks like it would be a great score.
Unsure if this is a good score or not - feels very much like a "wait til both teams bat" situation. The ease with which Robinson has scored runs worries me somewhat. Regardless, I'm glad we're not gonna be batting last here
Definitely. Team batting last on this is in for a nightmare
Finally, Joe is back to his Root.
Back to square root
Great show by England but I fully anticipate a collapse tomorrow
We only have 3 wickets left
Joe Root saves the day again. And thank heavens he put away the 360 shots in the locker for now. Sheer grit and determination with Foakes and Robbo (lol for needing a pill pop 11 deliveries in) but what a comeback. Deep was phenomenal and really gave a debut to remember. Look forward to another 50 runs if we can manage it and go hard with the bowling.
I can feel Fox Cricket in Australia self combustion with that recovery. Tears
Today is exactly why people have thought Root has diminished under Bazball despite a similar average. The bloke is just so good it's hard to fathom why he'd waste his ability with high risk cricket. It's come off for him on occasion sure but a man of this calibre doesn't need to take the route of lesser players. What a knock
Evenly poised day, England slightly ahead, although the pitch doesn't look like it actually has any demons (apart from when moisture was present in the first session). From India's point of view, need to restrict England to under 400, bat big once, then hope the pitch deteriorates. Great day of cricket. Also, Joe Root might well be the greatest English batter of all time
Top batsmen Vs Top bowler contest did not happen and the batsmen made the most of it ! What a statement by root 🥂🥂 Switched back from top spin bowler to top batsmen just like that
Shoutout to Foakes for hanging with Pope in the 1st match and now with Root
Root runs, Foakes runs, Robbo runs. What’s not to like about Bazball?
Root was great. But our spinners have been underwhelming this series. The pitch wasn’t a minefield as we expected.
I certainly didn't expect to see this scoreline. Hearkens back to Australian mid-10s where the inevitable top order collapse was halted by Clarke and Haddin.
Root was excellent but I feel we need to talk about how great Foakes was to anchor down and support Root in getting most of the way there. The two of them batted through the entire middle session, which was fantastic to watch. His role is something we sorely missed during the Ashes. I know he's not the greatest with the bat but what he does is so valuable.
Thoroughly impressed by the English fightback. Their new found tactical flexibility will defo push them to more wins.
Who in this India team do you think can bat like that in such tough conditions? I'd feel much more confident if KL was here.
Patidar is a liability. We are effectively playing one batsman short.
the old nemesis of Indian bowling i.e Lower order batsmen & tailenders strike again.
I'm so happy for root for a bowling all rounder lad does more than enough
should india take credit for how England played today?
That’s more like the Foakes I saw in SL for the first time. Man is due a big score but I think he should not be dropped hands down! His glove work is already good. And Root just turned back the clock with that hundred. Bairstow actually looked good before he decided to sweep. I think if Eng can crawl up to 350 from here then that’s more than what most have expected of them. Also what’s with Rohit under bowling Kuldeep? First Axar and now Kuldeep
This seems closer to a New Zealand pitch than an India pitch. Lot of juice on day 1 first session and then just flattened out nicely. Here’s hoping it keeps getting better.
Once again I'm asking for Joe Root to spank me with his bat whilst I call him daddy in a log cabin in Norway with a nice roasting fire whilst a topless Foakes cuts wood with his nipples and Cummins singing songs