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Joe Root backs Pakistan, hits backs at AB de Villiers | PC- X.com
England are flying high under Joe Root, and it seems Ben Stokes' sudden retirement is in the past. Root's England have won both Test matches against Pakistan, a team in massive turmoil.
Going into the third and final Test match, Pakistan are already under the pump, with the PCB making a truckload of changes to their squad. Moreover, they have been the centre of criticism, getting stick from various former cricketers and the English media.
Recently, the legendary Wasim Akram ridiculed the Babar Azam-led side, while former South African captain AB de Villiers also said the Pakistan team lacks "guts, fight, and character".
Meanwhile, the English Test captain has come out to defend the visiting team.
Joe Root backs Pakistan amid challenging times
Ahead of the final ENG vs PAK Test match, England skipper Joe Root referred to Pakistan as a challenging team, despite the visitors not being able to post even 200 runs on the board across four innings.
"Absolutely we have found [Pakistan] a challenge," Root said in the pre-match press conference.
However, Root also stated that the opposition's struggles shouldn't be viewed in isolation, but that his team's ability to deny Pakistan opportunities was the main reason they looked poor.
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"I think that's a bit disrespectful to both Pakistan as a team and to us as a team. I don't think we've allowed them to get into games because of how well we've played as well and how quickly we've read the situations and the surfaces that we've had.
"I think it's very easy to say one team is excellent and one team is poor. Normally it's somewhere in the middle," Joe Root added.
What did AB de Villiers say about Pakistan's poor run?
After the PCB released seven of its players after Pakistan's woeful 191-run defeat at Lord's, AB de Villiers asked hard questions of the stakeholders at Pakistan Cricket.
“Not enough, what's the word, guts. Fight. It doesn't always have to be pretty. Lots of soft wickets, and that's what it comes down to,” AB de Villiers had said on his YouTube channel.
Not only did the former Proteas captain question the players about lacking the hunger to fight and show grit on the biggest stage, but he also mocked the top management, including Babar Azam, who has been reinstated as Test captain, and asked him to start scoring match-winning runs again.
"A bit of mismanagement from the top. Lots of chopping and changing. Lots of changes in leadership. Babar is back now. So hopefully he gets an extended run, stays fit, and starts scoring runs again like we all know he can,” AB de Villiers had said.
Can Joe Root end ENG vs PAK on a high at his favourite Edgbaston?
The ongoing ENG vs PAK Tests haven’t been too fruitful for Joe Root, the batter. The prolific batter has scored just a solitary half-century vs Pakistan in this series. Meanwhile, he hasn’t registered a Test hundred since January earlier this year.
Regarded as one of the finest Test batters of all time, Root’s stats show an evident dip when he wears the captain’s hat. His Test average of 50.38 drops down to 46.31 when he leads England in Test cricket.
The trend has been the same since taking over the charge from Ben Stokes, as Root has scored 217 runs in five innings at 43.4, with two half-centuries.
However, the stylish batter would look to end the series on a high with a ton under his belt. That said, Edgbaston, the venue of the ENG vs PAK Test, is among Root’s most loved stadiums, as he scored three tons and five half-centuries in 10 Test matches, racking up 948 runs at 62.20.
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