England's boy wonder - Joe Root

Hollywood and its fans are going berserk over the release of the latest superhero flick- Superman: The Man of steel. The cricketing fraternity is not too far behind, excited about the meteoric rise of England’s boy wonder, Joe Root. Brushing aside his altercation with David Warner at a bar, Root produced another dazzling demonstration of his burgeoning talent and veteran-like mental strength, scoring a superlative fifty against Sri Lanka in the ongoing Champions Trophy, albeit in a losing cause. He seems even able to take being punched by an Aussie in his stride. He donned the aggressive avatar rather than the aggrieved party from Saturday night.

His eyes were so fiercely focused that it would be burnt anybody looking at them much like Superman’s laser ray vision. The 22-year-old Root is destined to become the Superman of the cricketing world in less than a few years.

Ever since his early years, Root was earmarked as a special player. Smart, stubborn, water-tight technique, iron-willed determination coupled with immense patience had Geoffrey Boycott gushing that Root reminded of himself. His approach has also drawn comparisons with Michael Vaughan, another fine batsman from the Yorkshire school of batsman-ship.

A string of ultra-consistent returns at the domestic level earned him a berth in England’s Test squad for the 2012 tour of India. And what transpired next was history, as they say. Alistair Cook’s merry men surmounted tremendous odds to outclass the hosts and with it script England’s first win on Indian soil for 28 years. Among several stellar performances, Joe Root’s tenacious debut- a baptism by fire stood out.

December 14th 2012, India vs England, Nagpur Test

Spiteful turn. Extravagant bounce for the tweakers. India’s spin quartet- Ravi Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Ravindra Jadeja and Piyush Chawla had reduced England to 139-5. Enter Joe Root, who steered England to stumps with Matt Prior without losing a wicket on a pitch that was described as one of the toughest by England’s star batsman, Kevin Pietersen.

The next morning, Root was up for training as early as 6am, grasping coach Andy Flower’s wisdom and assiduously practicing his shots. Armed with an unflappable temperament that would have spawned jealous among the illustrious seniors, the ice-cool tyro carried on to kept the Indian bowling at bay. “Joe was brilliant” said Pietersen. “He played some lovely cricketing shots. He has a good head on his shoulders”.

By the time Root was dismissed he had batted longer-in terms of balls faced- than all but five players on their debut Test achievement in England cricket history. He faced 229 balls for his gritty 73. The boy of steel was on view, not the kid next door. Beneath the youthful charm, there was a steely exterior.

He did not bat in his ODI debut in Rajkot but delivered a decent 9 over spell with the ball. Strikingly he was expected to maintain control than the more experienced Samit Patel. He presents a handy bowling option, lending balance to the line-up.

he role of being England Lions’ skipper was another honor in a career that is moving as fast as formula one car. Although it is way too early to see Root as a future England captain, he is a street-wise cricketer, who is rooted to the ground despite all plaudits and expectations that are heaped upon him

More success followed in New Zealand and at home. His first Test innings was a match saving one. In his fifth Test, Root played a match-winning knock. He compiled a rock-solid 104 – his maiden ton- in front of his home crowd on a golden day for Yorkshire cricket.

Root’s insatiable hunger for runs is a large part of his make up as champion. His ODI career too has taken off. 497 runs at an average of a shade over 55 is nothing short of impressive. The hallmark of his ODI game has been efficient rotation of strike besides finding the odd boundary.

He can maturely build an innings, rebuild an innings and finish an innings as well. The bottom-line is that Root is a complete cricketer, even at 22. Numerous are causes for England’s descent from the top but they can reclaim the crown if Root fulfills his destiny.