After registering his 34th Test century, taking him past Sir Alastair Cook’s tally and into top spot on England’s all-time list, Joe Root credited a shift in the team’s collective mindset for his prolific form.
“The environment and the way we look at the game now is so fun to be around,” he said, having scored 103 in England’s second innings here on day three against Sri Lanka to go with the 143 on the first day. “It’s an environment where you see guys thrive and even as a senior player it gives you so much energy.”
Since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes took over in June 2022, Root has plundered nine centuries and 2,488 runs at 59.23. Australia’s Usman Khawaja, in second place during this time, is 675 runs behind.
“The last few years I’ve had a good time of it and things have been pretty good,” Root said, referencing the psychological strain the Covid years had taken on the team. “That weighed heavy on a lot of people. The amount of games we played in those conditions was a lot more than everyone else and it took its toll.”
He said life as an international cricketer is like running on “a hamster wheel” where “you never stop and have time to really reflect and look at your game and work on things”.
Upon reaching three figures, becoming the first since Michael Vaughan in 2004 to do so in both innings at Lord’s, Root raised a crooked pinky finger towards the England dressing room. This in-joke, shared with Stokes in reference to the 2022 Elvis Presley biopic, is a sign that Root is enjoying himself.
As he celebrated his milestone, Cook and Vaughan on BBC Test Match Special suggested Root is now England’s greatest batter. Root, though, shouldered arms to the praise.
“They’re all things you want to try and put to the back of your mind and just concentrate on what’s next,” he said. “It’s nice to get the plaudits like that off two of England’s greatest players. But I feel like there’s a lot more work to be done and a lot more to contribute. When that peters out, I guess I’ll start thinking about that then.”
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Root broke another record on the day. When he caught Pathum Nissanka off Olly Stone – his second grab in the slips – he reached 200 Test catches, the first English player to this figure. “It should have been a few more, or happened a bit sooner, but that’s how it goes,” he said, jokingly.
Ian Bell, Sri Lanka’s batting coach for the series, was equally gushing about Root’s abilities, though admitted that it was frustrating watching him toy with the tourists’ bowlers. “His skill level is incredible,” he said. “Having spent plenty of time playing with Joe and watching him train and the way he goes about his business, just to see him achieve what he’s achieved now with so much more to give is incredible.”