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'Root Is Selling Himself Really Short' - Former Test Specialist Slams Joe Root's Reckless Batting

image-lsa3qq09Joe Root has made just 52 runs in his four innings [X.com]

Joe Root's adventurous little cameo during England's unsuccessful run-chase against India in the Visakhapatnam Test is facing great flak from fans and prominent experts. The English giant, who was dealing with a hurt finger, hoicked  and top-edged one to the short-third fielder after racing his way to 16 off 10 balls on Monday (February 5). 

Presumably, the injured finger had forced Root to opt for the high-risk approach as he tried to fetch as many as possible until the point where pain-relief injections provided him some respite. 

However, the manner in which the batter got dismissed at the critical stage of the England conquest, left a bitter taste in the mouth and helped India take irrevocable ascendancy in the contest. 

Root's departure only fastened the English downfall as the tourists could only reach as far as 292 in their quest to hunt down the imposing 399-run target. It was the ace right-hander's fourth consecutive failure of the series, including previous three scores of 29, 2 and 5. 

Chopra Critical Of Root's Failings 

Former India opener Aakash Chopra wondered if Root and other England players, including skipper Ben Stokes, who was run-out after a poor attempt of a single, would feel aggrieved over the fact that they over-attacked in the middle.

That made it easier for Indian bowlers to build inroads on a surface that was still playing quite good for batting even late on Day 4. 

"The English batters need to think about something. The shot Root played, if he hadn't played that bad shot and Stokes hadn't run like that, the runs would have been scored on the last day as well. It wasn't easy to pick up 10 wickets here," Chopra said. 


"Thank you so much, England guys. You did our job or else we wouldn't have been able to get them out that easily. I think Root is selling himself really short. Ben Stokes, firstly, bats too low in the order, which is counterproductive. Secondly, the way he ran, that was lazy in capital letters," he added.

As India stormed back into the series in Vizag, England require Root to produce his best in the next Test in Rajkot and ensure they recover from the defeat in the previous Test while keeping themselves running toe-to-toe with the mighty hosts in the five-match series.