Joe Root: Defeat in the second Test at Lord's falls on my shoulders
England captain Joe Root admits the blame for his side’s disappointing defeat in the second Test at Lord’s falls on his shoulders after some bizarre field settings saw India take control
- Bewildering tactics allowed Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah to add 89
- England were dismissed for 120 in the last hour of a pulsating game at Lord’s
- And the skipper stated after the match that he had got his tactical plans wrong
Joe Root took the blame after England made a complete mess of the second Test at Lord’s, going down by 151 runs to gift Virat Kohli’s jubilant India a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
England had begun the final day in charge, only for their bewildering tactics to allow tailenders Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah to add 89 for the ninth wicket.
Seamer Mohammed Siraj then took four wickets as England were dismissed for 120 inside the final hour of a pulsating game that left Root admitting he had got his plans badly wrong.
England captain Joe Root has admitted responsibility for defeat in the second Test vs India
He admitted he got his tactical plans wrong in bowling short at Jasprit Bumrah (above right)
‘A lot falls on my shoulders as captain,’ he said. ‘I would do things slightly differently if I had my time again. I don’t think I dealt well enough with that partnership as captain, and that put us in a difficult position.
‘I expected us to bat out the overs, and I’m disappointed we didn’t manage to. Credit to India, but there’s no hiding from it. We do need to get better, and we need to learn from some of the mistakes we made.
‘I feel exactly the same as every other player in that dressing-room. It’s a missed opportunity. But we have to stay calm. This is not the time to panic.’
Asked what he could have done differently as Shami and Bumrah made merry against a bizarre diet of short-pitched bowling, Root said: ‘Looking back at some of the field placings and the way we bowled, I’d have attacked the stumps more frequently, and used the short ball as more of a surprise.
‘I’d have taken a bit more time and brought more modes of dismissal into the game. As I said, a lot falls on my shoulders.’
India stated they had been fired up and motivated by England trying to bounce out Bumrah
Root denied that England had got sucked into trying to bounce out Bumrah in retaliation for the hostile 10-ball over he had sent down to Jimmy Anderson on Saturday evening, but admitted: ‘Fair play to Virat and his team. They jumped on to something that emotionally gave them an edge.’
India, though, saw things differently, with KL Rahul – player of the match for his first-innings century – saying the tourists had been fired up by England’s attitude towards Bumrah on the final morning.
‘If you go after one of our guys, all 11 of us will come at you,’ he said. ‘That got us going and the bowlers were really pumped and wanted to have a real crack at them.’
And Kohli himself, who spent much of the last two sessions strutting around Lord’s and picking fights with anyone in his path, said: ‘When we got on top, the crowd got behind us and we were happy with the support. We fed off that energy.
‘It’s a day-late celebration for Independence Day. It’s the best feeling we can give the Indians here and back in India. We have three matches to go and we will be just as intense.’ The third Test begins at Headingley on August 25.
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