S Poddar
Joe Root once again left a fantastic mark on the cricket ground, beating Sir Alastair Cook’s record of Test centuries as an English player. In this nail-biting moment at Lord’s, his 34th century against Sri Lanka sealed his place as the top scorer among England’s Test centurions. His insatiable work ethic and art on the pitch no doubt have made him the man for England time and time again, which did not change in this game either.
Root has been England’s batting mainstay in the past ten years, usually guiding his team out of precarious situations or propelling them towards commanding leads. The ability to perform under pressure was on full view during this Test, as he brought off successive hundreds, adding another great chapter to his already glorious career.
England were in control throughout the second Test against Sri Lanka. And not insignificant was the contribution of Root in that. At the close of a third day once again ruined by bad light, Sri Lanka were in trouble at 53 for two chasing 430 for victory.
Reaching his 34th Test century with just two wickets remaining, Root earned high praise from his former captain Sir Alastair Cook. On Test Match Special, Cook heaped praise on Root, saying, “He is quite simply England’s greatest. It is absolutely right that he has this record to himself. Take it in, Joe-we are watching you, and you are a genius.”
Its admiration for Root’s batting reverberated through the cricketing world. It’s impossible to keep off the feeling, when Root is at the crease, that he will find a way to score runs no matter what the situation. To watch Root bat is to watch a master craftsman at work-the innings are built methodically, elegantly.
While his fellow batsmen fell, often to some very rash shots, the resilience of Root stood out. Only Dan Lawrence was dismissed on the evening of the second day while playing a defensive shot; the rest simply seemed to give their wickets away far too cheaply. Root was tireless, reaching his century to a thunderous ovation from all corners of Lord’s.
With his first-innings century, Root had equaled Cook’s record, lifting England from 216 for six to the commanding position of 427. In the second innings, though – with time running out before a possible declaration – a different kind of pressure descended upon Root.
Lunch on day three: England 159 for four, ahead by 390 runs, with Root 48 not out. As wickets continued to tumble with depressing regularity at the other end, eventually Root was bound to accelerate. There was one nervous moment when he played an injudicious stroke off 79 and just missed, but far more threatening to his century were the cavorting strokes by his colleagues around him.
With number 10 Olly Stone as his partner, Root took it upon himself to manage the strike, judiciously determining when to run and when to stay in. He had driven through the covers on his 17th ball after 16 tortuous deliveries in the nineties, to bring up the landmark.
This after the first innings, where Root got through a nervous spell, stuck on 99 for 12 deliveries before securing his place on the Lord’s honors board once again. Eventually he was dismissed for 103, walking off to another standing ovation just moments after being dropped in a somewhat comical fashion following his century.
As the game wore on, grey-skied England’s bowlers took to the field and Lord’s became increasingly reliant on its floodlights. Ollie Pope, skippering the side, turned to his spin attack as the conditions continued to deteriorate, with play finally called off at 6pm. Not, though, before Root added another notch to his day with his 200th catch, both Sri Lankan wickets falling to his safe hands in the slips.
The performance of Joe Root in this match has not only broken records, but once again proved why he is considered to be one of the best that England has ever produced. His habit of rising to the occasion, time and often, speaks volumes about his genius and unmatched contribution to English cricket.
