Among the many selection mysteries and narratives dominating the build-up to the second India-England Test in Visakhapatnam is a pair of statistical quirks involving star batter Joe Root. At 11,447, Root will start the game with more runs than those of the India squad put-together – 10702. Funnily enough, he will also start with more Test wickets (65) than the aggregate of the other three England spinners in the XI (18).
Outlandish as that second statistic might be, Root was the pick of England’s four spinners in Hyderabad, offering greater control of length and line than those with spin bowling as their primary craft. And while Tom Hartley emerged as England’s new Test match hero after helping seal the win with a second-innings seven-fer on debut, Root picked five in the Test himself, including four in the first innings operating in better batting conditions. In the second, he got one of India’s better players of spin, KL Rahul, to misread length and play back to a full delivery and get dismissed LBW.
The evolution of Root’s secondary skill into a potent weapon in these conditions has offered England a lifeline in the all-rounder’s slot, the positional balance usually provided by Ben Stokes before his knee surgery. And while England will continue to field four spinners in Vizag too, Root’s presence allows them to play two seamers, should the need arise, and still have three spinners to exploit the conditions.
The latest update to the ICC rankings page validated this rise by placing Root at No.4, a place above Stokes in the list of Test all-rounders. A cheery Stokes acknowledged the role reversal and the happy turn of events post the captaincy handover on the eve of the game.
“I did always say to Joe I thought he underbowled himself as captain, and when he walked off with four-fer I did say to him, ‘see, I told ya I’d make a bowler out of ya’,” Stokes said. “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.
“To also have the benefit of Joe’s bowling out here is obviously massive. I’m surprised he’s not actually mentioned he’s nipped above me, but I think we’re just two people who don’t really care about stuff like that. He’s a great batsman but when his bowling comes into consideration as well, it’s a huge bonus having him out here.”
At 32 and 33, Stokes and Root are among the old heads in a squad otherwise littered with young talent. On the field in Visakhapatnam, they’ll be accompanied by a 41-year-old with a haul of 690 Test wickets in his kitty. James Anderson did not play in the Hyderabad opener but that did not stop the 183-Test veteran from running drinks, substituting on the field and simply being a part of a larger objective and of course, the vibes.