'Desperate' Joe Root comes good for England in deteriorating Ranchi

In the third Test against India in Rajkot, star England batter Joe Root tried to play a reverse scoop that went straight to Yashasvi Jaiswal at second slip. It triggered an England collapse as Root was subjected to a lot of criticism. Many former cricketers and experts advised Root to not play according to Bazball and to stick to his natural game for success in Indian conditions.

Root eventually changed his tactics in the fourth Test in Ranchi as he took some time to get going. In the end, he managed to hit 122* runs as the visitors posted 353 runs in the first innings. After the end of Day 2, Root reflected on his performance and stated that he was desperate to score some runs and hopes to continue with the same momentum.

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“That's how I try and play every game really. Trying to play the conditions, the situation of the game. And it was very, very obvious what was needed in that situation on that surface. And thankfully, it paid off,” Root was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

“It's been nice to contribute this week. It has been a lean series for me. So I was desperate to try and get some runs for the guys, and it was nice to do that today. And hopefully, that can continue that for the rest of the series now,” he added.

Got ourselves into a nice position at the end of the first innings: Root

Root was delighted with England’s performance with the ball on Day 2. They managed to pick up quick wickets as the hosts are reduced to 219/7 after the end of the day’s play. The Rohit Sharma-led side are trailing by 134 runs as Root hopes that the bowlers will pick up three quick wickets on Day 3 to put England on top.

“We've got ourselves into a nice position at the end of the first innings. So we'll see how things progress throughout the game. Obviously, it looks like it's going to keep deteriorating and keep getting worse. So if we can get three early wickets tomorrow, hopefully, that puts us in a really strong position for the rest of the game,” Root said.