Following the top of day three play of the third Test towards India, England opener Ben Duckett defended star batter Joe Root’s dismissal whereas enjoying a reverse scoop, asking why the critics didn’t query his shot choice when the veteran right-hander was scoring heaps of runs final summer time. In England’s batting collapse on day three after a commanding efficiency on day two with Duckett’s 153 being a standout, Root gave a simple catch to Yashasvi Jaiswal at slips whereas making an attempt to reverse scoop a Jasprit Bumrah supply.

Following the match, talking to TNT Sports as quoted by ESPNCricinfo, Duckett stated that Root is a “freak” and does issues different gamers can’t. He defended the dismissal saying that it “is the same as playing a drive and nicking off.”

“Rooty is a freak and does things a lot of us cannot do. In my eyes that dismissal is the same as playing a drive and nicking off. He plays the reverse scoop so well and I am sure a lot of people were not [criticising it] when it worked in the summer,” stated Duckett.

Later talking to BBC, Duckett stated that he was gutted that Root’s shot didn’t go for a 4 or six.

“I am just gutted it didn’t go for four or six. I think he has earned the right to do that. He has played that shot so well. I think it is exactly the same as me playing a reverse sweep and getting caught deep point,” stated the batter.

Cricketers and pundits stated the previous England captain — who has clocked over 11,000 runs in 138 Tests — had misfired by making an attempt to suit into England’s attacking “Bazball” model of cricket.

“Joe Root’s latest Bazball shot is the stupidest in English Test cricket history,” learn a headline for a scathing article by Telegraph cricket author Scyld Berry.

Root continued his subpar run in Asia with one more disappointing occasion of shot choice in the course of the third Test towards India at Rajkot.

This tour continues to be a disappointing affair for England’s premier batter, who has managed simply 29, 2, 5, 16, 18 and seven in six innings up to now.

Since his double century, a knock of 218 within the first Chennai Test over the past tour to India again in February 2021, Root has had an abysmal document in Asian situations.