Former England captain Joe Root chipped in with a wicket at a crucial juncture of the third day of the second Test match against New Zealand in Wellington today. Providing validation to an age-old theory of “one brings two”, Root dismissed New Zealand opening batter Tom Latham (83) exactly three overs after fellow spinner Jack Leach had sent another opener Devon Conway (61) back to the pavilion.
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Following-on, the two left-handed batters shared a 149-run opening partnership. Although New Zealand trailed by 226 runs before the start of this innings, it had become imperative for the visiting spinners to pick a wicket especially after their pacers were unable to do so in a rare instance on this tour.
Introduced into the attack for the first time in the 38th over, Root immediately picked a wicket in the first over of his third spell. Wanting to sweep a fairly straighter delivery, Latham not making any contact with the ball led to his dismissal. With the ball hitting his left leg, Latham challenging umpire Chris Gaffaney’s decision resulted in New Zealand not losing a batter but a review as well.
Joe Root Celebrappeal video
Perhaps inspired from the likes of Stuart Broad and Sam Curran, Root was seen participating in a “celebrappeal” right after the ball hit Latham’s leg.
For the unversed, celebrappeal is an unofficial abbreviation for “celebrating while appealing” wherein the bowler starts celebrating a dismissal without even waiting for the umpire’s decision. Originally made popular by Broad, the latest instance of the same was registered by Root at the Basin Reserve on Sunday.
Are New Zealand facing another heavy defeat?
Playing a Test match after eight months, New Zealand batter Will Young (8) failed to make any impact across both the innings. Third batter to be dismissed post tea, Young’s early departure has left the Kiwis in an archetype spot of bother.
Yet to touch England’s lead, New Zealand will require a monumental effort from their remaining batters to prevent losing their second match in a row. Taking into consideration their form of late, someone will really have to defy odds and score a proper daddy hundred for them to take the match to the last day of the series. Bazball, however, should allow England to attempt any target without the fear of losing on Day 5.
