England skipper Joe Root has not ruled out the possibility of fielding both James Anderson and Stuart Broad for the third Test against India at Ahmedabad. The penultimate match of the series is a Day-Night affair, meaning both Anderson and Broad could do some damage under floodlights with the pink ball. “I think you can’t write off those two (Anderson and Broad). They will get opportunities to play together in the future for sure. There is a lot of life left in both of them as of now. There is a chance they will play together tomorrow,” he told a virtual press conference on Tuesday.
However, Root held his cards close to the chest as far as announcing their Playing XI was concerned, adding that he will only do that very close to the game.
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“We haven’t decided (our team composition) at the minute. We are going to take our time and give ourselves as much time before making the decision. We want to know how the pitch will look tomorrow morning.”
He also said that the new-look Motera Stadium which can hold upto 110,000 fans is a ‘phenomenal’ ground and he was looking forward to playing here on Wednesday.
“It is a phenomenal stadium, I am sure we will see some good matches in this ground over the years. I’m sure the atmosphere will be electric, it’s great to see fans back from the last match onwards.”
Root further added that his side will be wary against suffering from a batting collapse, something that he admitted has been ‘a trend’ in Pink Ball Test matches around the world.
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“It seems to be a trend (collapses in a Pink Ball Test). The first 20 balls are vital for getting used to the conditions and seeing how the ball is moving. It’s not just the twilight session that is challenging; any time things can become a struggle for batsmen.
“We have worked very hard as a whole on the batting side of things. The pink ball seam is harder so that will aid the spinners too. We are not focusing too much on one particular bowler but instead of playing what is in front of us.
“The pitch will spin at some point and we have to be ready to react to it. The guys are excited for the challenge.”
He also said that while the side remained focused on making it to the finals of the World Test Championship, they will take the last two matches as they come.
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“We are focused on the World Test Championship final but we are taking it one game at a time. Obviously that (3-1 series win) is a target but we need to win this game first.”
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