Stokes chiselled ‘a bowler’ out of Root

Visakhapatnam, February 1

Ben Stokes was on a mission to mould a bowler out of premier batter Joe Root, and the maverick England skipper can afford himself a satisfactory chuckle seeing his venture coming to fruition in the first Test against India in Hyderabad.

Root had picked up five wickets in that match, four in the first innings and the all-important scalp of an in-form KL Rahul in the second gig, to play a significant part in England’s stunning come-from-behind 28-run victory.

Root got the ball to turn at a good pace and his straighter one also troubled the Indian batters.

With left-arm spinner Jack Leach out of the second Test, Root will be expected to shoulder more responsibility in an inexperienced spin department. He had bowled 48 overs in the first Test.

“I did always say to Joe I thought he under-bowled himself as captain, and when he walked off with four-for I did say to him, ‘See, I told ya I’d make a bowler out of ya’. Having someone like that out here who is not only someone to throw the ball to and change the pace of the game up — he’s bowled me lots of overs, Joe has — then having him batting at four and the runs he’s scored and how important he is to us,” Stokes on the eve of the second Test.

‘Good wicket for a day or two’

The Hyderabad pitch offered turn from Day 1 but Stokes reckoned the Vizag surface might be better for batting at least in the initial phase of the game.

“It might be a good wicket for maybe a day or two. But out here in India and other parts of the sub-continent, you tend to see it start to spin more and more as the Test goes deeper and deeper. Even though it does look like there’s a little bit more moisture in there with the heat — and today is very hot again — any foot holes and stuff like that might come into play the further the Test goes,” he said.

Sarfaraz hopes to join league of legends

The mountain of runs that he scored in domestic cricket might have opened the doors of Indian cricket to him, but for Sarfaraz Khan the learning never stops as he aspires to join the league of legends like Virat Kohli, Viv Richards and Javed Miandad. The prolific Mumbai batter turned into a fan-boy while discussing his learning process. “I like to watch Kohli, AB de Villiers, Sir Vivian Richards, and even Miandad because my dad has told me I play like them. Anyone who is succeeding, I am watching them so I can learn and apply it. I want to continue doing this, whether it’s in the Ranji Trophy or playing for India in the future,” Sarfaraz said. pti