Ahmedabad: Captain Joe Root hinted that England might play both pace bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad in the pink ball Test that begins on Wednesday here at the Sardar Patel (Gujarat) Stadium in Motera.
England has usually avoided playing the two together in recent times with Anderson playing one Test and Broad the other.
However, with the series level at 1-1 and England coming under criticism for rotation policy and importantly the visitors still having a chance to qualify for the World Test Championship final as they need to win the remaining two Tests, they may feature both together.
“Yes they have got a chance. It is a great selection headache to have. And to have all of these bowlers performing and giving us variety. We feel that we can pick a team that can best suit the conditions,” said Root while speaking to the media on the eve of the third Test.
“The records that they (Broad and Anderson) have and the things that they do, especially in the last couple of years – (that) is the reason why they are up there with the top three bowlers in the world. They are consistently getting better. The older they get, they are using that experience to their advantage,” added the right-handed batsman.
“I am sure there will be opportunities where they will get to play together in the near future and much further down the line as well. The records that they set will be very difficult to surpass.”
The England captain also talked about stopping Rishabh Pant who has been scoring well and playing match-turning knocks.
“He (Pant) is a fine player and plays extraordinary shots. He makes it very difficult for some bowlers. But… can we keep him quiet and can we make it difficult for him to really take us on and find ways of either get him off the strike or get him out,” said Root.
England has not played a pink-ball Test over the last three years. The previous game they played was back in March 2018 in Auckland against New Zealand.
“We’re going to take our time with the limited information we have on this ground and pink-ball cricket. You know, we are going to make sure we give ourselves as much (time) as possible heading into the game before we make a decision,” Root added.
