In the early hours of Tuesday morning, England could take a crucial Test series lead over India, with captain Joe Root once again undoubtedly player-of-the-match.
Rarely is an unbeaten 180 not worthy of that honour but the other side of the equation — the side where only one of Root’s teammates passed 50 runs in the first innings — must be noted.
Without Root, England would be in strife.
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That’s a heavy burden for Root but, strangely, it’s one which he’s carried with greater ease the heavier it has become.
Prior to this year, the level of expectation was immense on the Yorkshireman, whose numbers were on a decline since becoming captain.
Root was averaging 52.80 with the bat, but 10 runs were slashed from his average after he took on the daunting top job in English cricket.
As a…
