England skipper Joe Root has cautioned his team to become complacent or arrogant if they want to clean sweep India after taking a 2-0 lead in the 5-match series. England won the first Test by 31 runs and then outplayed the visiting team at Lord’s by registering a huge win of an innings and 159 runs. However, Root also expressed that his team isn’t looking far ahead in order to avoid unnecessary pressure upon themselves and instead will take it one match at a time.
Admitting that 5-0 would be a dream scoreline, the England skipper said, “Obviously, that would be the dream – to put in five complete performances and have five wins. But it’s important we don’t get complacent, arrogant, or look too far ahead. We’re playing against the No. 1 side in the world, with some very talented players, and we have to make sure we keep looking to learn and develop.”
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As quoted in ESPNCricinfo, Root further added, “That’s got to be our mentality…of course, it’s a great position to be in – 2-0 up with three to go, going into Nottingham, which is a great place for us to play. But we’ve really got to make sure we are realistic about things. Enjoy the position we’re in, and when we get our opportunities really try to put India under pressure and drive the game forward, but not get ahead of ourselves.”
Meanwhile, the England captain was also glad to have a happy headache with Chris Woakes delivering a match-winning performance after replacing the all-rounder like Ben Stokes.
Taking about Stokes further, the English skipper said, “Ben is obviously a huge part of this squad, so it’s a miss him not being here this week. But what it did do was create an opportunity for Chris to come in and perform – and boy, he didn’t disappoint did he? He was outstanding. He’s a big part of our squad, all three formats, it’s been a frustrating summer for him, he’s been injured for a long part of it, and to get an opportunity to come in this week – the easy thing to do is get anxious, try a bit too hard.”
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Root concluded, “But, Chris settled in magnificently well with that first spell in particular, then took that confidence into his batting, that partnership changed the game, turned it on its head, and got us miles ahead on that surface. It’s a great headache to have for us, going into next week.”
