England’s Test skipper Joe Root has recently claimed that he is desperate to be a part of the highly-celebrated Indian Premier League. In the pre-match press conference ahead of the second Test, Root spoke about IPL ambitions and reason behind not submitting name for mini-auction.
During the press conference, Root said, “At some point of my career, I am desperate to be a part of an IPL season. Hopefully, a few more beyond that as well. It is something I would love to experience, and love to be a part of.”
The English team has reaped rewards from English players participating in the IPL. The likes of Josh Buttler, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, and Jofra Archer have improved as players after playing in the best T-20 league. ECB no longer objects English players from participating in the tournament as it eventually helps the national team.
The 30-year-old is regarded as one of the best batsmen in the world. He has been consistent performer for England in red ball cricket, but he has the stroke play and good technique to flourish in the shortest format of the game. Root would have benefitted from participating in IPL this season. He is currently not part of England’s T-20 squad, so good performances in IPL would have helped him to book a place in the final squad for the T-20 World Cup that will take place in India later this year.
Root promised that he would submit his name in the next auctions and further said, “With the amount of international cricket and Test cricket, in particular, this year didn’t feel like it was the right time. I didn’t feel like I could throw in all my energy into it, which it deserves. And, I don’t think it would set English cricket up best with what’s to come.”
The immediate focus for Root will be winning test series in India. In the first test against India last week, Root hammered a double ton in the first innings and powered his team’s score a mammoth total of 578, which later resulted in a historic win against a strong Indian team. Root became the 15th Englishman to play 100 Tests last week. He is racing towards scoring 10000 runs in the hardest format to become the only English batsman to achieve the feat after Sir Alastair Cook.