Joe Root's second Ashes hundred draws plenty of praise from Sky commentary team
'He has been a run machine recently, churning them out for fun'
Thursday 9 July 2015 11:18, UK
Joe Root was again the star for England, scoring 134 – his seventh Test hundred and second Ashes ton – on day one of the first Investec Ashes Test at Cardiff.
With England 43-3 in the morning session, Root was dropped second ball by Brad Haddin, but his counter-attacking innings – off just 166 balls, including 17 fours – helped lead England’s recovery to 343-7 at stumps.
Here’s what the some of Sky Cricket commentary team – including our new Australian guest – had to say on his impressive knock.
RICKY PONTING
“Root really has played well, give him a lot of credit. He was aggressive nice and early, and although he survived an anxious moment or two early on in his innings, he really grew into his innings beautifully. He looks very comfortable and not only dragged England back into this game after a slow start, but at one point had them in the ascendancy.
"It’s about putting pressure on the bowlers. Obviously the faster you score, you’re able to dictate the game as a batsman. The great Australian teams I played in, with the likes of Justin Langer, Matthew Hayden, they were always putting pressure back on the bowlers.”
MICHAEL ATHERTON
“He’s a guy who is obviously in great touch and going great guns at the moment. There was a lot of chat in the build-up to this series, lots of players wheeled out in front of the media.
"Two comments on Root particularly stick in my mind though – Jimmy Anderson spoke very highly of him, saying he thought Root was going to go on to be one of the great England players, and Alastair Cook said he thought Root was the best player of spin he’s ever seen for England. Two senior, experienced players, speaking very highly of him.”
MICHAEL HOLDING
“Once Root is at the crease, he will score runs. As a bowler you would think ‘yes, I have a chance here’, because any batsman that is playing all these shots, you would think at some point he will make a mistake. But Root doesn’t make too many mistakes, so when he does you’ve got to make sure you capitalise on it.
"Haddin dropped the chance second ball and Root has gone on from there. The argument remains though over whether he should be there to steady the ship, or make sure it doesn’t get rocky, so batting at five or three?”
SIR IAN BOTHAM
“He has just been a run machine recently, churning them out for fun. He is so good to watch, pleasing on the eye, exciting. I’m in the party that would like to see Root at three because I think he can just take attacks apart.
"Some of the best players I either played against or watched – Viv Richards, Javed Miandad, Ricky Ponting – all batted at three. He plays his shots and times the ball so sweetly. I don’t think a move up the order would affect him at all. You need to get your best player in at three.”
DAVID GOWER
“The way the game goes, there will be a lean patch at some stage but the last 15 months have been incredibly productive for Root. And it’s the way he plays too which is so impressive, with a smile on his face at all times. In fact, the only time you see the smile disappear is when he is dismissed.
"So he obviously enjoys himself, and that is absolutely vital when you’re trying to sell the game to people, aspiring youngsters especially. There is also the added bonus of the way in which he makes his runs, with fluency and with flair.”
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