"Root losing balance and natural game in 'Bazball' era", Alastair Cook

Alastair Cook, Joe Root (Pic: File Pic)

England batting great Alastair Cook feels that Joe Root is losing his balance and natural game while trying to fit in Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum's "Bazball" plans.

Alastair Cook was the last international captain to win a test series in India back in the year 2012. He stated that Joe Root did not seem to be in control during the second innings of the second test match. He scored just 16 runs in 10 deliveries.

Also Read: IN PHOTOS | India's top five father-son duo to play cricket

England's Bazball strategy could not help them to take over India in the second test. They lost the match by 106 runs. "He is England's best batsman there's ever been in all formats but he does struggle sometimes with the tempo of this Bazball era," Cook, who is England's highest Test run-getter, said on 'TNT Sports' channel.

"He sees all these other people playing these aggressive shots, which suit their style. Rooty has got 11,500 Test runs, he's brilliant, but he's so desperate to fit in to what Ben (Stokes) and Brendon (McCullum) are doing that sometimes I don't think he gets his balance of attack and defence right," the owner of 12,472 Test runs said.

Cook wants Root to play his natural game rather than trying to imitate others who are scoring at a high strike rate. "He was on 16 off nine balls and he doesn't normally strike at that rate he's normally striking at 75 to 80, which is still incredibly high for a Test match strike-rate, with zero risk.

Also Read: IN PHOTOS | Top 5 Indian pacers with best bowling figures against ENG in Tests

"That's when I love watching Joe Root bat." Cook feels that if Root gets his first 15 runs, he is always in line to get a hundred, something that didn't seem likely on Monday in Visakhapatnam.

"When he gets in, you call it early I've called it early a few times on sub-continent days: he's on 15 but he's getting a hundred here.

"He's going to milk them at his will, sweeps, all in control. I don't think he was in that control," he observed.

(With PTI Inputs)