Root also credited England bowlers for keeping Virat Kohli quiet so far in the Test series.
England captain Joe Root on Tuesday (August 31) said that the hosts will prepare to tackle India’s senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin if he plays in the upcoming fourth Test, starting on September 2 (Thursday) at The Oval. The ongoing five-match Test series is currently tied at 1-1.
Ashwin might have not yet played in the ongoing five-match Test series in England, but Root is well aware of the threat the off-spinner can pose in the Test arena, saying if the “world-class” spinner plays in the fourth Test, they will tackle him according to the deliveries he bowls and not his reputation.
Root said during a virtual press conference on Tuesday, “I think his record speaks for itself. He is a world-class player. We have seen him score runs and take wickets against us and we know what is capable of in the Test arena. We will certainly be making sure that we are prepared for the challenges he poses coming into this Test match along with other combinations that they might throw at us.”
Saying England batsmen need to be cautious, he pointed out: “Ultimately, you can get wrapped up and you can end up playing the player. So it's really important that you just play the delivery and to the situation that you find yourself in. Whoever it is that we face up against this week, it's about playing the ball that's right in front of you and not to the reputation.”
The right-hander, who is in form of his life after notching up his sixth Test hundred this year and has amassed 507 runs so far in the ongoing Test series against India, has also insisted that England is ready for all combinations, as he expects an Indian comeback in the fourth Test at The Oval.
He noted, “A world-class team like India, led by Kohli, I expect nothing less than a response and we'd be naive to think otherwise. That's why I think it's really important that we don't get too comfortable, we don't think that we've achieved anything at this point, we've just got ourselves back to level playing.”
Meanwhile, Root credited his bowling group to keep Kohli “quiet” in the ongoing Test series, where the Indian skipper could manage just one half-century so far.
The England skipper said, “A lot of credit has to go to our bowling attack. First and foremost, Virat is world-class; there is no doubt about that. That's why the credit needs to be given to the bowling group to keep him quiet, it is an extremely good effort from the bowling group and it is something we have to continue to do if we want to win the series.”
He continued, “For now, we have found ways to get him out, he is a fine player and has done tremendous things in Test cricket, so we got to keep trying to find ways of building pressure and keep in him quiet. Hopefully, that relentless pressure is something that we can contain moving forward.”
On England’s performance so far in the Test series, Root said: “More than anything, we were very pleased with how we've grown into the series. We've worked extremely hard to get to one-all in the series. We got to look to go even further, dig a little bit deeper, and really start to go through the gears. From the bowling perspective, we were pretty much flawless, we hit the right lengths early on and then managed to do that for long periods of time throughout the whole game.”
On the return of Mark Wood and Chris Woakes, the skipper said: “It's fantastic to have both (Woakes and Wood) available and it adds strength to what has been a very confident squad right now. We will see how they pull up and take a call taking account of the conditions.”
He also reacted to Michael Vaughan's recent comments that you won't be considered a truly great captain until you win the Ashes.
He said, “In terms of what other people think of me as a captain is sort of irrelevant. My job is to do the best I possibly can for the period I'm in the role and that will never change.”
Root added, “I think as an England captain, you are always judged on how you do in the Ashes. I think more than anything I need to make sure that we try and win this series first. It's a huge series for us. And then we'll turn our attention to Australia, something that we've been planning for a long time.”
He signed off by saying, “It's (Ashes) certainly something that everyone wants to do is to go to Australia, it's something you're always desperate to have as part of your career. I'll give everything to the team, everything to the squad of players and if at the end of it, that's not good enough for some people, but I've done everything I can, I can be proud of that.”
(With PTI Inputs)