ENG vs IND: Joe Root acknowledged the challenges with the softening Dukes ball but urged players to adapt instead of stalling play — subtly referring to India’s on-field disagreement with umpires over a ball change during the Lord’s Test.
00:00Hi Joe, I wonder if I could start just by getting your read on what you reckon to that first innings total.
00:11Do you think that was about what you were looking for?
00:13I think it's a good score, I think we'll have a better indication when they finish their innings.
00:17But I do feel generally here plays best day two, the wicket.
00:23And it's going to be very hot, very dry.
00:25It's already very slow, it generally goes up and down and offers something later on in the game.
00:30So the fact we've got those runs on the board, I think it's crucial.
00:33There were two brilliant partnerships today, which Bryden in particular, the way that he managed that situation was excellent.
00:39And Jamie again showing the form and the skill that he has at the minute was wonderful.
00:45So I think it's important.
00:47I think here you've always got something to work with that slope.
00:50And there's always different ways that you can, even when it feels very placid and the ball's soft and it's slow pitch,
00:55there's always something to work with.
00:57So it's really important that we keep that, bear that in mind.
01:00And, you know, if the ball does go out of shape and we get a new one a bit harder and a fresher scene,
01:07then we exploit that as well.
01:08But I think it's another good day for us.
01:12And you obviously ticked off number 37 this morning and then you broke the record for the catch.
01:17You obviously knew you were level, presumably, and that was a pretty nice one.
01:21What are your better catches to tick the record off for Alderman?
01:23It was nice just to catch one.
01:25There's been plenty of drops in there.
01:27So, no, it was nice today to break that partnership and get things moving in the right direction for us.
01:33So, yeah, it was good.
01:34Can I ask you about the feeling in the middle, around the ground as Joffre returned?
01:40It was a class, wasn't it?
01:41Yeah, it felt great.
01:42You guys were smiling so much.
01:43Yeah, I think just the genuine joy seeing him back playing test cricket, just on his face when taking that wicket, making things happen.
01:52You know, the impact that he adds to the group is huge in the dressing room but also out on the field.
01:57Clearly, he's an X-factor player.
01:59He's shown that, you know, when he's played white ball cricket for England, where it's in the IPL,
02:03big games he turns up and he does things that other players can't.
02:06And you saw that in a short sort of burst today.
02:10So, you know, I do think he's going to play a big part with the rest of the group.
02:13And I think one thing that you will say about it is he compliments nicely the rest of the attack.
02:19And at different points throughout the game, they're all going to have to work together
02:22and play their part in taking these 20 wickets if we're going to win this game.
02:26So, really nice start for him.
02:29Great to see him back smiling, enjoying his cricket and also making a huge impact at the start of this innings.
02:35Yeah, I mean, he was smiling, you were smiling.
02:37There was a real buzz just around the crowd.
02:40There was a great picture of Bash trying to celebrate with him and he didn't know what to do.
02:45So, no, it was just brilliant.
02:47So, I like to say, when you've got that about your way, you can get a whole crowd up and about
02:52and creating a noise and atmosphere like that, you've clearly got something special to offer the group, which is great.
03:00Meryl, Matt, and then we'll take the performance first.
03:02Joe, apologies in advance for asking about the wicket, but it's pretty rare to see you, Ben,
03:09or it's never happened that you, Ben, and Harry have been bowled in the same innings.
03:14Can you give an insight just about, from your perspective, about what it is with the way that Jasper at Bowls makes it so difficult to pick?
03:23I think as well, it's just as much on the surface itself.
03:30Clearly, he's got a very unique technique, delivers the ball differently to other bowlers, but that's part of the art of the game.
03:37He offers you something different, a different challenge to other bowlers, and you've got to be good enough to find ways of countering that,
03:45whether that's defensively or attackingly, and for large proportions of yesterday, managed to deal with that quite nicely,
03:52and unfortunately there's a delivery today against his second new ball on a wicket, which clearly offers more with a harder ball, laterally anyway.
04:01So, fair play to him. But, you know, that's the art of the game, right, is understanding when you can make an impact,
04:10when you get your chance to open the game up, can you take it, and he did that well today, and I guess the question is, can our bowlers do it tomorrow?
04:24Hi Joe, did it feel like 2019 again? I haven't standing there while Jasper's running in.
04:28Did it feel familiar in any sort of way, the crowd's up, he's charging in 90-odd mile an hour? Was there a familiarity to it?
04:36I think just more than anything, it was just a joy to see him back playing, just, like, to see him running in, bowling at that pace, maintaining that pace as well.
04:46I mean, it might have taken him a couple of balls each spell, but he's up and around that 90-mile-an-hour mark throughout the three spells that he bowled,
04:52which was great to see. I'm just excited for him, you know, it's been great to see him back in and around the group,
04:58and then to come in and take a wicket in your first over, to then get a tap on the shoulder when their best player throughout this series,
05:05nearly 600 runs, comes out to bat, and you're the man that he turned to.
05:08I think that's a great compliment, and, you know, it must fill him with confidence going into the rest of this game.
05:13So, great to see him have an impact already, and as I say, I still think he's got a big part to play for the rest of it too.
05:19So, congratulations on the innings, but how do you see this wicket, you know, moving forward on day three, four,
05:26because, you know, you can spin, we all know that.
05:30Do you think that there is a role for spinners, you know, because Ben said after the last game that he thought that
05:36the edge-best in wicket is quite like a subcontinent wicket, and it's looking like more of a subcontinent wicket.
05:41What do you think in upcoming days?
05:43Yeah, I don't see it getting any better, really.
05:45I don't think it, you know, gaining any pace or getting more bounce, consistent bounce anywhere.
05:52I think it'll get more up and down, and you might see a little bit of turn throughout the game as well,
05:56but I think it's going to be quite turgid.
05:59I think it's going to be quite slow scoring, unless you get someone like Rishabh who comes out
06:03and plays, you know, a very aggressive style of batting where it takes quite a lot of unorthodox methods,
06:14and you could see it as a slightly more old-school kind of test match.
06:21But, yeah, I think we've got a great opportunity tomorrow in the morning if we can get a couple of wickets,
06:28make a lead.
06:29I think batting last on that surface could be quite tricky if we get things right.
06:32So I think the game's poised nicely, like the others have been, and, well, certainly like the first one was,
06:39and it's, you know, a great chance for us to turn up tomorrow and try and make things happen.
06:47Joe, it's the third test going on, and in camp far too often have been complaining about the shape of the ball,
06:54quality of the ball, far too many changes, twice happened today.
06:57What is your ringside view of what's happening there?
06:59What do you make of the ball, and how much has it changed, if it has,
07:03since you've seen a variety of makes of the Dukes now?
07:07Is it any different, or how is it, or is it the weather playing its part?
07:10I'm not, I don't know the ins and outs of how they make it.
07:13I do know that they're handmade, so you're never going to get two balls exactly the same.
07:16I do think that this summer's been a bit of an anomaly for us.
07:21We're not used to getting this much sun and this much heat, getting squares as hard and as firm,
07:26and outfields as firm, so whether that plays a part, but, yeah, it's one of those things where,
07:33if they're not, if the balls are going out of shape, you change them and you don't make a big deal out of it.
07:37It's not, I don't think it's the end of the world.
07:38I think it adds a different dynamic to the game, and you've got to be skillful enough to adapt to the changes,
07:45whether it stops swinging or starts swimming or does a little bit more.
07:50I personally think that, you know, if you want to keep getting the ball changed,
07:54then you get, each team gets three challenges every 80 overs, and that's it.
08:00So if you want to get it changed, but the rings have to be the right size, not too big.
08:04And that would be, I think, a nice way of compromising and saying it's not, you know,
08:10it's not all on the manufacturer.
08:11These are, sometimes these things happen, but you can't just keep asking and wasting time
08:17and slowing the game down at the same time.
08:20And to finish, Matt, Shibman and Sidney to finish.
08:23Joe, could I just ask about Shibman-Gill's dismissal?
08:27I suppose, firstly, as a batter, how conscious you'd be of the keeper stood up to the seamer,
08:31and secondly, how big a moment it felt after the wiki he had in Birmingham?
08:36Yeah, I've seen a lot of bat already, as we all have, so it's nice to take that wiki.
08:42I think it's a good bit of bowling, clever as well.
08:44And, you know, sometimes as a bowler, you've got to take your ego out of it.
08:47And for Wossey, I think it's smart on a wiki where, you know, you're working with a slope.
08:52If you can put someone further back in the crease, there's less time for them to,
08:57or more time for the ball to deviate one way or the other.
08:59So you feel like you're bringing more modes of dismissal into the game.
09:04It stops them batting out of the crease and cutting the angles down.
09:08And, you know, just rewards for a long, hard spell.
09:11Created pressure and, you know, clearly a player in great form.
09:15Good player anyway, but in serious form and a really important wiki for us.
09:20So I think just good thinking, good skill to be able to execute it as well.
09:25And great catch, unbelievable catch.
09:27Hi, Joe.
09:29Just in terms of the, you talked about there, like the idea of running three challenges per 80 overs.
09:34Do you think the over rates are, obviously, it's been a great test match,
09:36but do you think the over rates have been a bit of an issue?
09:38I think we've missed 25 so far.
09:40Do you have any other ideas for how to kind of rectify that?
09:43Again, a bit like Jessica, I don't want to get myself in trouble by trying to rewrite the thing.
09:53But, yeah, I think that's one way of policing the ball thing.
09:57In terms of over rates, it can be quite difficult on a day like today.
10:01We're not used to this, are we?
10:0230 in England feels like 45 elsewhere, so, for us.
10:07But I guess just try and keep on top of it as much as you can.
10:13But, yeah, not really got an answer for you.
10:16Sorry.
10:16Last one, Sidney, go ahead.
10:19Joe, ever since Brendan McClellan has taken over,
10:22we have seen passball, the team, adopting a very high-octane style of batting.
10:25But, and you also evolved with that.
10:28But this is kind of a pitch where it necessitated old-school batting,
10:31something that you are very famous for, very well-known for.
10:34So, how does it feel like, you know, that technically,
10:38we've got to be really technically sound to really do well on this pitch.
10:41And KL was also doing it, again, technique solve.
10:43So, in between all those flat pitches, when you get such challenging pitches
10:48and old-school batsmen like you really flourish, how does it feel?
10:51It feels good.
10:53I think that's the art of batting there, right,
10:55is being able to go up and down the gears, play on different surfaces,
