Captain Joe Root relishing the extra responsibility of being England’s batting mainstay: VVS Laxman
Former India batter VVS Laxman feels that England captain Joe Root doesn’t seem burdened by the extra responsibility of being the team’s main batter in Test matches. According to Laxman, Joe Root is enjoying the challenge, which is bringing out the best in his batsmanship.
Joe Root frustrated India’s bowlers on Day 3 of the second Test at Lord’s. Having notched up his 22nd hundred in the longer version of the game, the England skipper went past 150 in the last session of play, looking in complete control of proceedings.
Praising Joe Root for yet another brilliant knock, Laxman said on ESPN Cricinfo:
“Pure Test match hundred. We saw the same in Nottingham as well. I think he is relishing the fact that the responsibility lies on him, Joe Root the captain and Joe Root the batsman. I think that extra responsibility is getting the best out of him. Leading into this Test series, there was a lot of talk - can Joe Root be consistent? Can he convert those half-centuries into big centuries? There was lot of talk about the brittle English batting line-up.”
“The best way to shut down criticism is by performing. And performing when it matters the most. That is exactly what Joe Root has done in Nottingham and today,” Laxman added while hailing the 30-year-old batter.
Joe Root up there with Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson and Steve Smith: VVS Laxman
Until a couple of years back, critics opined that Joe Root was not in the same league as some of the best batters of the modern era since he wasn’t getting the big scores. However, over the last few months, the English skipper has raised his game significantly.
According to Laxman, Joe Root is right up there with the very best in the business. He stated about the prolific batter:
“He is up there with the best. I always felt Joe Root, Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson, Steve Smith and I will also include Babar Azam in it, these five players are fabulous batsmen at the highest level. The best thing about them is that they are absolute role models to youngsters and they take on the responsibility and the challenges that they confront."
All players (except Smith) are captains of their respective teams. At the same time, they are the main batsmen. We know what kind of responsibility the main batsman has. It is never easy to fulfill such kind of expectations. All these five batsmen, whenever they get runs, they dictate terms,” Laxman added.
During the course of his magnificent hundred at Lord’s, Joe Root became only the second England batter after Alastair Cook to cross 9000 runs in Test cricket.