When Joe Root started his innings against Scott Boland at Edgbaston, Birmingham, on the fourth day of the first Test, he displayed his diverse shot repertoire.
The reverse scoop, one of the most unconventional shots in Test cricket, was played by one of the current England team’s more traditional batters as early as the second over of the first Test at Edgbaston.
The Australian pacers Pat Cummins and Scott Boland were the targets of Root’s early onslaught as he entered the game with his goals clearly stated.
Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley, England’s openers, were lost in cloudy conditions on Day 3 before play was halted by rain, putting some pressure on the team. With a slim 35-run lead when the day started, England was 28 for 2.
Root attempted to reverse scoop Cummins with the first delivery he faced, however, placing all of the pressure on the Australian bowlers.
Twitter Reactions For Joe Root’s Shot
Joe Root can be mighty effective than MO in this pitch. This match will change tides in matter of 2 quick wickets #Ashes23 @bhogleharsha @KumarSanga2 @RickyPonting
— Arun Nagasamy (@ArunNagasamy) June 19, 2023
And what year did Joe Root start playing for England?
— bjgorton2001 (@bjgorton2001) June 19, 2023
And what was Joe Root’s career average before Bazball.
Pretty much the same…
https://twitter.com/JewellC212282/status/1670828286665162752?s=20
Joe Root looking in great form , he can surpass Tendulkar in leading run scorer list if he plays like this .
— Alok Kumar Nayak (@AlokCnayak) June 19, 2023
Most Test 100s also can be break
https://twitter.com/SofiaBerg467497/status/1670812694218428417?s=20
But in the very next over, Joe Root was successful using the reverse scoop. Even though Pat Cummins brought the wicketkeeper up to the batter, Root continued to attempt the risky shots.
In the very next delivery, he succeeded with the same shot, which went for a boundary, after hitting Boland to a six over the slip cordon.
Root crossed the stumps to flick a delivery to the leg-side boundary as he made his way down the field, which prompted Cummins to switch to a different fielder.
England quickly passed 70 thanks to Root’s incredible cut shots to short-pitched deliveries as he remained aggressive and stitched a 50-run partnership with Ollie Pope.
When Ollie Pope was looking to get into a rhythm with a few boundaries, Australia fought back when captain Pat Cummins dismissed him for 14 with an inswinging Yorker.
For the fourth wicket, Joe Root was joined by Harry Brook, who struggled to get going in the first innings.
An earlier match on Sunday saw England take a slim 7-run lead as Australia was bowled out for 386. Australia lost their final 4 wickets for just 14 runs thanks to a fiery spell from Ollie Robinson that included a verbal farewell to Usman Khawaja.
Prior to the hosts declaring after only 78 minutes of play, England scored 393 for 8 in their first innings of play, helped by Joe Root’s 121.
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