Follow UsEngland’s senior and centurion batter Joe Root insisted that his side’s build-up ahead of the second Test at the Gabba left them well-prepared despite a string of dropped catches under the lights that shifted momentum in favour of the hosts on Day 2. With five catches spilled on day two, four of which were dropped during the final session, and Australia building a crucial lead, Root argued that England’s execution, rather than inadequate preparation, was to blame for them being behind.
“We worked as hard as we could in the lead up to this,” Root said, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
“We had five days of prep and we did a huge amount of catching and making sure we utilised those two sessions under lights well.”
He acknowledged that replicating match conditions is never perfect, especially under floodlights, but maintained that the team had done everything within their control to ready themselves for the crucial encounter in Brisbane.
“You could look at it like that [England could have played in Canberra] but you can’t replicate that surface, the bounce, the way the nicks come. It’s never going to be exactly the same, it’s never going to be perfect. All you can do is give yourself the best possible chance and I think we've done that,” Root remarked after the day’s play ended.
Root mentioned how England’s preparation involved fielding under varied conditions, in daylight, twilight, and under lights, while facing their own bowlers to simulate real match scenarios.
“In the lead up to this game, we’ve got used to conditions, we’ve got used to the heat, we got used to the surfaces. The nets were at 3mm grass length, the same as the wicket. We faced our own bowlers, we’ve caught under lights, we’ve caught in daylight and tried to catch in twilight as well,” England’s leading run scorer in Test cricket said.
“Sometimes they don’t stick. We’re not perfect, we’re all human and we’re going to make mistakes.”
Despite the dropped chances and an underwhelming day in the field, Root insisted England were “not massively out of the game at all.” He expected his team to respond positively in the sessions ahead.
“It’s about turning up tomorrow with the right manner. I don’t think we’re massively out of the game at all. I think we’re actually not too far behind, as long as we get things right early tomorrow,” he said.
Despite the positivity and defensiveness of Root’s statements, it's undeniable that fielding lapses proved costly as Australia ended day two of the Test on 378 for 6, with a 44-run lead over England’s first-innings total, effectively shifting the advantage firmly to the home side.