Star England batsman Joe Root has faced two of the best Test spinners of the contemporary era: Ravichandran Ashwin and Nathan Lyon. Over the years, Root has attempted to find out how the tandem prepares a batter.
Root believes Ashwin has numerous tricks up his sleeve and isn’t afraid to vary things up even in the longest format. He believed the Indian off-spinner kept him guessing and finally discovered a way to leave numerous dismissal options available.
Joe Root mentioned Ravichandran Ashwin on the Sky Sports Podcast:
“I’d say, Ashwin is making sure that you don’t play the previous ball. He is very good at trying to drag you across the crease and get your head to one side of it and beat both edges quite frequently. Ashwin is probably slightly trying to find ways of getting you out rather than trying to wear you down, over long periods of time.”
Joe Root
Root has scored 418 runs in Tests against Ashwin, facing 692 balls. However, the experienced off-spinner has dismissed Root up to seven times.
Joe Root on Nathan Lyon’s approach
Joe Root believes Nathan Lyon has a predetermined strategy in which he maintains patience with a tight line and length while waiting for the batter to make a mistake. Lyon has usually bowled to Root on wickets with little immediate aid available for the spinner.
The former England captain believes that in such scenarios, Lyon prefers to get additional bounce and bring near catchers into action. However, as the game advances and tough areas appear, Root believes Lyon tries to strike them by widening his line.
“With Lyon it is all about, I think, especially in the first half of the Test match to get really over the top of the ball, get bounce bowl in between you like the knee roll and hit and try to bring short leg and leg slip into the game as much as he can and then just slowly, get slower with his pace and drift wider into that. There’s that footmarks, um, Mitchell Starc has so kindly done for him for such a long period of time.”
Joe Root
Nathan Lyon has dismissed Joe Root an incredible eight times in Test cricket.
Lyon and Ashwin have just joined the 500-wicket club in Tests, and the latter will play his 100th Test at Dharamshala on Thursday, March 7, when India takes on England.
