Commentator Ravi Shastri hilariously trolled Joe Root on Day 3 in the Rajkot Test for having more success and participation as a bowler than a batsman in the series so far.
Joe Root is having one of his worst Test series as a batsman but has taken up a huge share of the bowling workload. He has done well as a bowler but has simply not put up any notable score with the bat.
In five innings with the bat, Joe Root has managed only 70 runs at an average of 14. He has not gone past 30 even once in this series, and his low scores have certainly been a factor for England being behind in the Rajkot Test right now.
On the other hand, he has been one of Ben Stokes’ go-to bowlers in this series. Until the time of writing, Root has sent down 90 overs, which is the third-most for any England bowler, after Tom Hartley and Rehan Ahmed. While Hartley and Ahmed are frontline spinners, Root has had some success himself with the ball, taking 7 wickets and maintaining a good economy of 3.25. Two of his wickets have been caught and bowled, those of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ravindra Jadeja.
During commentary in the third session on Day 3 in Rajkot, Ravi Shastri made a funny one-liner, trolling Root.
Shastri said, “Joe Root has bowled 89 overs in this Test series which is more than the runs he has scored.”
Alastair Cook questions Joe Root for getting out on reverse-ramp
Root’s dismissal on Day 3 in Rajkot ignited a huge debate. While Root has had success with this reverse ramp – a shot he added to his game in the Bazball era – he has now been dismissed twice playing this shot. Today, he got out early in the morning, attempting the reverse ramp to Jasprit Bumrah, caught by Jaiswal at slip.
Root’s former captain Alastair Cook believes Root should have avoided playing that shot against Bumrah, especially in the first hour of play.
Cook said, “You have to question if it was tactically right to play that shot. You’ve got Bumrah, who is India’s best bowler, and Root has struggled playing against him.”
“When he played it in the Ashes on the first ball on day three at Edgbaston, we didn’t mind because it was about getting runs. But in this series, when all the wickets have been in the first 30 minutes of play, it was the wrong time to play it.”
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