RAJKOT: England skipper Ben Stokes admitted that former England captain Joe Root's reverse scoop, which was pouched by Yashasvi Jaiswal at second slip, early on Day Three changed the course of the match, as England were 224 for two in reply to India's 445 at that point. However, he refused to blame the out-of-touch Root for one of England's heaviest defeats.
"Yes, because he got out to it, definitely (it) was a turning point. Root's scored nearly 12,000 runs, I think we can leave the decision-making and 'why' with Joe. I can understand why there would be frustration around that because of how good a player Joe is," Stokes said.
He also made it clear that he wouldn't question Root for playing that shot.
"I thought Joe was looking really, really good at the crease, and he sensed that as a time to put something different back onto Jasprit and make him maybe think about something. Because what that shot does for Joe is it makes fields change, makes bowlers' mindset change towards him. He got out to it, and it's not a shot you necessarily see Test match players playing. But look, who am I to question a guy who has 30 Test match hundreds, nearly 12,000 Test match runs? I think he knows what he's doing," Stokes summed up.
