The King in the North !

13 December 2012.The 4th and Final test at Vidarbha Cricket Association stadium in Nagpur.England occupying the lead in the Anthony De Mello Trophy ,2-1. Instead of Sambit Patel as a no 6,the visitors allow a 21 year old to take the test cap.A brave decision by Cook that paves off.For Joseph Edward Root , the opportunity and timing couldn’t be more surreal.He did not disappoint.Facing the spin quartet of Ravichandran Ashwin ,Pragyan Ojha, Ravindra Jadeja and Piyush Chawla, he occupies nearly seven hours at the crease and with a dogged 229 ball 73 between the first two days.He would not give his wicket away. On Day 5 when stumps were drawn he was still there in the second innings at 20.England went on to  draw the test and produce a win in what is arguably the most difficult place to win a series for the first time in 18 years.The rest as they say history.

Its hard to imagine since that series how Joe  would not have been in the first team. He was consistent to say the least in the following one day series.He had a lean tour versus the Kiwis to follow up but his maiden ton followed at his home ground of Headingley against the Kiwis during the early course of the summer of 2013.The real test was to be measured in the Ashes of 2013 where his 180 at Lord’s was of a signature impact in England’s domination in the 1st of two Ashes series  that year.However,in Australia,the same spark was more often missing and he managed only  87 at  Adelaide in an innings of any note in that embarrassing winter down under.Johnson and co. had the better of him.

Nevertheless,he came back. The following summer a double century at Lord’s and two tons versus the touring Indians resurrected him.He had a second  ODI ton that year at Headingley in September.England ‘s world cup preparations took a  leap of faith with the hastily arranged Lankan series in December. Although Joe had a productive time in Sri Lanka, as well as scoring a century  against them in the World Cup at Wellington,Poms didn’t seem to benefit much. They crashed out in a poor showing again in Australia.

If ever there was a series that depended on his wicket so much it was to be reflected in the following Ashes of 2015.England were reeling at 3 down on the opening morning in Cardiff when Haddin spooned Root’s catch in what was a costly miss.Joe brought up a century that day and England controlled the test from then on as they did the series.His Nottingham ton later in the test famous for Broad’s 8 for,turned out to be the icing on reclaiming the Ashes.

Though he plays spin very well, he couldnt take England to a win in the Abu Dhabi versus the Greenshirts last autumn.He fell 25 short of the target when Pakistan skittled in their second innings having supported Cookie in his massive 263 with an 85 as England took the 1st innings lead.His timely fities in the susbequent one dayers did ensure though England took the advantage 3-1.

By this time, England had fixated  Joe Root as their premier batsman in all formats.Enter South Africa  and it was only going to get better as he notched up a fifty plus score in each of the four tests as well as two more one day tons.The 2016 T20 world cup in India  was no different as on the placid tracks, he was by far the best England batsman.The winning  83 in the chase against Proteas  in Mumbai was a reminder of his all format skills.In the final as England struggled initially he buckled back and launched a 54 at Eden Gardens to set up some sort of a total.He ended the tourney with 249 runs, 3rd on the scoring list.

The current summer has been no different,although early on he did struggle against Sri Lanka.Though Yasir Shah got the better of him at Lord’s twice, he came roaring back with a career best 254 at Old Trafford.Lancastrians reserved the loudest cheers for a Yorkshireman.Oh what a sight.He ended the series  topping the run scorers with 512 at a huge average of 73.Continuing his rich vain of form, he has posted five straight fifties to date.Headingley awaits a coronation.Few could doubt his all format prowess. Arguably, he has to be the No 1 if it there was a unified  all format ranking.I’m sure my Protean and Indian colleagues will disagree. As the cycle of tests brings him back to India,his matchup  with Virat Kohli will surely become a highlight of the autumn.

So what is it about Joe that makes him click around the world. He might not have a distinct cavalier style as Vivian Richards or a Ricky Ponting but he does the job effectively. Concentrating all the time and staying focused, he gets job done in singles and twos until waiting for the bad ball.There is no rocket science but then in cricket to be successful simple things need to be executed.That he does very well.He made the grade from being successful right from collegiate level to the academy level of the county until he was chosen for the Yorkshire excelling for both  second and first elevens.His wicket always prices the most when you look back at the card. Whether its playing for Yorkshire or England, he seldom disappoints.A true asset.

A lovable character in the dressing room, Joe always chips in with the work. A useful slips man,he can put in a decent few overs with the ball as well whenever needed.There is no vanity in his art and he does it all with a sense of pride for the team.Few will disagree he is in line for the future  captaincy of the team whenever Cookie calls it a day He will deserve that.His battles are sure to continue.For all you Jon Snow fans around the globe, Joe is equally majestic as all of England now chants to him as “The King in the North”.