"He makes us all feel pretty rubbish" - Ben Stokes heaps praise on Joe Root
Ben Stokes has lauded his captain Joe Root as England's best player of spin bowling. Stokes remarked on Saturday that Joe Root makes it look so easy that other players in the camp feel "rubbish".
Joe Root put up a batting masterclass with his majestic double-century in the first Test against India. With his innings of 228 runs, he became the first batsman to score a double-ton in his 100th Test. He reached the milestone with some elan as well: a six over long-on off a Ravichandran Ashwin delivery.
Addressing a virtual press-conference at the end of the day's play, Ben Stokes called Joe Root a 'delight' to watch.
"He makes us all feel pretty rubbish with how easy he makes batting look. I was quite surprised he ran down the wicket and scored the six to bring out the double. He is in phenomenal form, just making things look very very easy," said Ben Stokes.
"The way he dominates spin is incredible to watch. I do not think we had an England batsman who plays spin like he does. He's got an answer and an option to everything thrown at him. He is just a delight to watch at the moment," added Ben Stokes.
Joe Root's innings in Chennai was an extension to his purple patch in Sri Lanka, where he was the top-scorer with a whopping 426 runs from 4 innings at an average of 106.5. The England captain has now scored 2 double-tons and 3 consecutive 3-digit scores in his last 3 Tests.
We are in a very strong position: Ben Stokes
England went to stumps at a commanding position with 555 runs on the board at the expense of 8 wickets. They will look to solidify their position further on Sunday.
"It is nice to come back in with a bit of time off and spending some time out in the middle. We are in a very strong position as a team after putting ourselves above 500 with two wickets still remaining going into day three," Ben Stokes added.
The hosts, on the other hand, will be completely exhausted after fielding for 180 overs on the trot. Even on the flat Chennai pitch, Team India will require some spirited efforts from their batting lineup to win the game.