England v Pakistan: Nasser Hussain hails 'faultless' Joe Root
Root unbeaten on 141 after day one of second Test in Manchester
Saturday 23 July 2016 13:11, UK
Joe Root hit a "faultless" century at Emirates Old Trafford from the No 3 spot he will make his own, says Nasser Hussain.
England star Root collected 18 boundaries while reaching 141 not out on day one of the second Test against Pakistan as the hosts, beaten by 75 runs at Lord's, racked up 314-4.
Root was caught in the leg-side for 48 and nine in the capital but Sky Sports expert Hussain believes the Yorkshireman played risk-free cricket in Manchester.
He has moved up to No 3 and the way he batted, he will be there for a long time to come.
"It was a faultless display," said the former England skipper, as Root notched his first ton from the No 3 position.
"He decided to take all risk out of his game - when he did play the pull shot he kept it down - and play in the areas he wanted to play.
"He left the balls from the left-armers going across him and waited for the seamers to bowl at him, realising there was a hundred for the taking on a very good surface.
"He has moved up to No 3 and the way he batted, he will be there for a long time to come."
Root and his captain Alastair Cook (105) shared a 185-run stand for the second wicket, Cook matching Sir Don Bradman's record of 29 Test tons in the process.
Hussain says the pair's centuries helped "make up" for England's batting travails at Lord's, where they were bamboozled by leg-spinner Yasir Shah (10-141) and bundled out for 215 and 207.
"It's one thing winning the toss but they then had got to go out there and play well and make up for the mistakes they made at Lord's," added the Sky Sports expert.
"A lot of fuss was made after that game - but the real issues was that a long batting line-up didn't bat well enough, particularly against Yasir.
"They put that right here, with their two senior players converting starts into hundreds - in Root's case, a big hundred."
Watch day two of England's second Test against Pakistan from 10.30am, Saturday, Sky Sports 2.
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