Root's run chase and seamers doubling up – Old Trafford talking points
Hardly a match goes by these days where Joe Root is not setting a new statistical milestone – and he is on the verge of a huge one this week. If he adds 120 runs to his current haul of 13,259, the Yorkshireman will move up to second on the all-time Test run-scorers list. Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis and Ricky Ponting are in his sights and then only the great Sachin Tendulkar, who has 15,921 runs, will be ahead of him. After his gritty 104 at Lord's in the first innings, the 34-year-old could add to his tally and reach a historic milestone. As Ben Stokes said in his pre-match press conference, Root is 'the absolute GOAT'.
In the squad. In the team.
Let's do this, LD 👊 pic.twitter.com/KXkhhzFQ6v
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 22, 2025
Shoaib Bashir's Test summer is over because of a broken finger he suffered at Lord's, which has opened the door for fellow spinner Liam Dawson's return to the Test side. The slow left-armer's last red-ball outing for England was all the way back in July 2017 but he has lit up the domestic scene for Hampshire with more than 100 wickets in the past couple of seasons. He was in electric form with the bat as well last year with 956 County Championship runs at an average just below 60. Dawson bats at number six for his county, so for England to have that quality batting at eight adds great depth to the side.
England naming the same frontline fast bowling attack as they did at Lord's means Jofra Archer keeps his place. In his first Test appearance after a four-and-a-half-year absence, he cracked the game wide open in India's doomed pursuit of 193 with three crucial wickets including dangerman Rishabh Pant. Being able to call upon Archer's pace and hostility is vital for England. India, meanwhile, are set to retain Jasprit Bumrah for the third of three scheduled appearances this summer. Despite only playing twice so far, he is second on the wicket-taking charts with 12 at an average of 21. His impact is astronomical, and he is set to play a huge part in a must-win Test for India.
India will be without all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy for the remainder of the series due to a knee injury. One option India have is to bring left-arm leg spinner Kuldeep Yadav into the side. That would leave them with three spinners at a ground that has been known to turn, and a trio of Kuldeep, Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja is a potent attack. But playing one less seamer with doubts around the notoriously unpredictable weather forecast in Manchester could leave India vulnerable.
One of the biggest talking points after the Lord's Test last week was the slow over-rate and constant ball changes from both sides. However, a time-wasting row late on the third evening lit the touchpaper for a fiery last couple of days. Shubman Gill reopened old wounds by insisting Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett acted against the fabled 'spirit of the game'. Harry Brook, meanwhile, revealed England head coach Brendon McCullum told them they were 'too nice' and that the flashpoint with Crawley and Duckett was an 'opportunity that arose for us to not be the nice guys'. With the series on the line in Manchester, do not be surprised if the needle continues this week.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Guardian
14 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
How Joe Root compares to greats after moving second on list of Test run-scorers
Here, the PA news agency looks at how he compares to the greats of the game. One more rung to climb… 🪜 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 25, 2025 – Root climbed from fifth at the start of the Old Trafford Test to second as his score of 150 took him past India great Rahul Dravid, former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis and ex-Australia captain Ricky Ponting – who hailed Root as 'magnificent' while commentating for Sky Sports. – Sachin Tendulkar's 15,921 runs remains the all-time Test record, with Root now 2,512 behind on 13,409. – Sir Alastair Cook, whose England record of 12,472 Root passed last year, ranks sixth on the list. – The top 10 is completed by Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara, West Indies pair Brian Lara and Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Sangakkara's long-time team-mate Mahela Jayawardene. – Fifteen men in all have passed 10,000 runs in Test cricket, with Australian trio Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Steve Smith, India's Sunil Gavaskar and Pakistan's Younis Khan, with 10,099, rounding out that group. New Zealand's Kane Williamson, on 9,276, is the nearest active player outside that mark. – Root has 13,409 Test runs at an average of 51.18, in 157 matches and 286 innings. – He made his Test debut in 2012, scoring 73 against India in his first innings. – The first of his England-record 38 centuries came the following year against New Zealand. His 66 half-centuries are also the most for his country. – Root's most prolific year brought him 1,708 Test runs in 2021 at an average of 61 – though his best average for a single year is 97.13 in 2014, helped by unbeaten scores of 200 against Sri Lanka and 154 and 149 against India. – He has more runs against India than any other nation, 3,249 in 34 Tests, with Friday's effort his 12th ton against them. He has over 1,000 runs against every opponent bar Bangladesh and Ireland, against whom he has played just two Tests each, and Zimbabwe (one). – Over 8,000 of Root's runs have been made in his customary number four position, where he averages 52.11. His best average by position is 61.05 at number five while his career-best score of 262 was made at number three, against Pakistan last year. – Earlier in the series against India, he also set a world record with his 211th Test catch, passing Dravid at the top of that list.
South Wales Argus
14 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
How Joe Root compares to greats after moving second on list of Test run-scorers
Here, the PA news agency looks at how he compares to the greats of the game. Climbing the ranks One more rung to climb… 🪜 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 25, 2025 – Root climbed from fifth at the start of the Old Trafford Test to second as his score of 150 took him past India great Rahul Dravid, former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis and ex-Australia captain Ricky Ponting – who hailed Root as 'magnificent' while commentating for Sky Sports. – Sachin Tendulkar's 15,921 runs remains the all-time Test record, with Root now 2,512 behind on 13,409. – Sir Alastair Cook, whose England record of 12,472 Root passed last year, ranks sixth on the list. – The top 10 is completed by Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara, West Indies pair Brian Lara and Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Sangakkara's long-time team-mate Mahela Jayawardene. – Fifteen men in all have passed 10,000 runs in Test cricket, with Australian trio Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Steve Smith, India's Sunil Gavaskar and Pakistan's Younis Khan, with 10,099, rounding out that group. New Zealand's Kane Williamson, on 9,276, is the nearest active player outside that mark. Root's record Root has been a consistent presence in England's top order (Nick Potts/PA) – Root has 13,409 Test runs at an average of 51.18, in 157 matches and 286 innings. – He made his Test debut in 2012, scoring 73 against India in his first innings. – The first of his England-record 38 centuries came the following year against New Zealand. His 66 half-centuries are also the most for his country. – Root's most prolific year brought him 1,708 Test runs in 2021 at an average of 61 – though his best average for a single year is 97.13 in 2014, helped by unbeaten scores of 200 against Sri Lanka and 154 and 149 against India. – He has more runs against India than any other nation, 3,249 in 34 Tests, with Friday's effort his 12th ton against them. He has over 1,000 runs against every opponent bar Bangladesh and Ireland, against whom he has played just two Tests each, and Zimbabwe (one). – Over 8,000 of Root's runs have been made in his customary number four position, where he averages 52.11. His best average by position is 61.05 at number five while his career-best score of 262 was made at number three, against Pakistan last year. – Earlier in the series against India, he also set a world record with his 211th Test catch, passing Dravid at the top of that list.
Leader Live
14 minutes ago
- Leader Live
How Joe Root compares to greats after moving second on list of Test run-scorers
Here, the PA news agency looks at how he compares to the greats of the game. One more rung to climb… 🪜 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 25, 2025 – Root climbed from fifth at the start of the Old Trafford Test to second as his score of 150 took him past India great Rahul Dravid, former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis and ex-Australia captain Ricky Ponting – who hailed Root as 'magnificent' while commentating for Sky Sports. – Sachin Tendulkar's 15,921 runs remains the all-time Test record, with Root now 2,512 behind on 13,409. – Sir Alastair Cook, whose England record of 12,472 Root passed last year, ranks sixth on the list. – The top 10 is completed by Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara, West Indies pair Brian Lara and Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Sangakkara's long-time team-mate Mahela Jayawardene. – Fifteen men in all have passed 10,000 runs in Test cricket, with Australian trio Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Steve Smith, India's Sunil Gavaskar and Pakistan's Younis Khan, with 10,099, rounding out that group. New Zealand's Kane Williamson, on 9,276, is the nearest active player outside that mark. – Root has 13,409 Test runs at an average of 51.18, in 157 matches and 286 innings. – He made his Test debut in 2012, scoring 73 against India in his first innings. – The first of his England-record 38 centuries came the following year against New Zealand. His 66 half-centuries are also the most for his country. – Root's most prolific year brought him 1,708 Test runs in 2021 at an average of 61 – though his best average for a single year is 97.13 in 2014, helped by unbeaten scores of 200 against Sri Lanka and 154 and 149 against India. – He has more runs against India than any other nation, 3,249 in 34 Tests, with Friday's effort his 12th ton against them. He has over 1,000 runs against every opponent bar Bangladesh and Ireland, against whom he has played just two Tests each, and Zimbabwe (one). – Over 8,000 of Root's runs have been made in his customary number four position, where he averages 52.11. His best average by position is 61.05 at number five while his career-best score of 262 was made at number three, against Pakistan last year. – Earlier in the series against India, he also set a world record with his 211th Test catch, passing Dravid at the top of that list.
