Cricket is fickle, you have to keep working: Root stays hungry despite success

If you had to pick one player for your Test team right now, you can’t see anyone beyond Joe Root. The Yorkshireman is perhaps at the peak of his powers, with 375 runs in the series against Sri Lanka, averaging a staggering 75, including twin tons in the Lord's Test. 

Those twin tons were enough to take him past Alastair Cook’s record of 33 Test tons to become the most successful Test batter in the country. But even that astronomical success of being England’s best batter doesn’t stop Root from staying hungry. 

“I feel good, you know how fickle this game is, you have to keep working. Try and work as hard as I can to get better. I love playing in this team, great lads, play some really exciting cricket,” Root said in the post-match presentation. 

“Turn up everyday wanting to get stuck in because of the way we go about it. Last few years have been the most enjoyable of my career and long may that continue,” he added. 

Since Bazball took over Test cricket in England, Root has amassed 2,513 runs, with his average jumping to 57.11, with 11 half-centuries and nine centuries. 

“It’s been a good summer, we’ve played some good cricket. Always nice to contribute. It's what you pride yourself on as a senior player and as a batter. Great to see this team constantly finding new ways to look at the game and keep evolving and keep getting better,” he added. 

The England summer saw several new faces, with debuts for Gus Atkinson and Josh Hull. It also saw the return of Dan Lawrence at the top of the order. 

“To see some new faces come in and put their best foot forward shows the depth that we've got within this format in English cricket. May the success of this team continue as well. I think we came up against different conditions in this game. As a team, we try to keep finding ways to put pressure on the opposition, but unfortunately for us, it didn’t come off this game,” he added. 

Will the rare blip at The Oval change England’s thought process and philosophy?

“We still stick to our methods, there will be times when we get challenged and we need to find ways to get back into the game. It's an opportunity for us to learn and keep getting better.”

It wasn't just Root who shone through the series; there was also Kamindu Mendis for Sri Lanka. The stylish left-handed batter was Sri Lanka's bright spot in the series, with 267 runs and three 50-plus scores in his first tour to England. He even played a vital role in Sri Lanka's win here at The Oval, scoring 64 in the first dig. 

"In these conditions, you have to face difficult situations, and I enjoyed it. I just did small changes, not big ones, even in the first Test I did a small change. It's not a big deal but if you are confident in your ability, it's the most important thing."

"It was challenging when seamers came around the wicket so I moved to off-stump after the 1st game. In England, it is always a challenge to face the seamers, but sometimes it can happen that you can get caught in the slips or the keeper. I'm happy whatever the team asks me to do, but at the end of the day what I do to the team, whatever the position I play in, I will be OK," he concluded.

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