India vs England: Joe Root gets out to a miscued sweep shot off Axar Patel

Joe Root was a key factor behind England’s 227-run win over Virat Kohli’s India in the opening Test at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. He became the Player of the Match after he scored a double century, taking the Three Lions to a crucial 1-0 lead in the four-match series. It went without saying, among the other English batters, he looked the most accomplished and relaxed.

In the second Test at the Chepauk itself, Root was again expected to weave magic. But this time around, he succumbed to a failure after crossing the three-digit mark in his last three Tests. After India scored 329 in their first innings, England lost their openers Rory Burns and Dominic Sibley in quick succession. Root had a massive task at hand to drag his team out of jail.

Joe Root falls cheaply

He started with a few streaky shots but then had to walk back. He tried to play a sweep shot, a shot which he played with precision in the first Test. However, this time around, it was the same stroke that led to his downfall. He tried to go for a sweep off Axar Patel but ended up getting a top-edge. Ravi Ashwin, standing at the short-fine leg, took a simple catch inside the circle.

Here’s the video:

Big big BIG wicket of Joe Root. #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/NvOHZsATFF

— AmirCXN (@cxn_amir) February 14, 2021

Earlier, Deep Dasgupta, the former Indian cricketer, reckoned that Axar would be tough to face on a deteriorating surface at the Chepauk. As per Dasgupta, Axar won’t be easy to counter since he doesn’t give much air to the leather.  He also felt that a score above 300 would be a decent one in Chennai.

“India have 300 [already] and if they get to that 350-370 mark, I think it’s a really good total. I think already 300 is a good total on this surface and this I’m saying because of Axar [Patel] predominantly. Joe Root was a great example,” Dasgupta was quoted as saying on Sports Today.

“Joe Root looked the most difficult bowler to face because he was bowling quick in the air at 90kmph. And that is exactly what I’m expecting from someone like Axar to do. Axar will come in and bowl faster in the air,” he added.