Unburdened by captaincy, Joe Root was back to his old self as he peeled off a 26th Test century while guiding England to an impressive five-wicket win over New Zealand in the series opening clash at the Lord’s on Sunday. Root reached the milestone in the 77th over with a flick for two and with that he also completed 10,000 runs in Test cricket becoming the second over Englishman to accomplish the feat after former captain Alastair Cook.
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Chasing 277 on the fourth day of the first Test, Root’s unbroken 120-run partnership with Ben Foakes (32) ensured England overhauled the target in 78.5 overs with five wickets remaining. Root belted three fours in an over of Tim Southee to seal the impressive win, giving his team a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
The 31-year-old remained unbeaten on 115 off 170, an innings that featured 12 fours. For his match-winning ton, he was also chosen as the player-of-the-match.
“Feels fantastic, winning a Test match after a long time is a great experience,” Root said at the post-match presentation. “I have really enjoyed it and looking forward to the rest of the summer. I always feel that we get great support and appreciate whether home or away and it is nice to see them (crowd).”
He continued, “I just want to keep batting as long as I can, win as many games for my side. As long as they got the energy and drive to do it, I am gonna be backing and do everything I can to help him (Ben Stokes) become successful.”
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The contest began with New Zealand opting to bat first and England bowling them out for 132. In reply, the hosts collapsed from 75/1 to be skittled for 141.
With the pitch improving, New Zealand set England 277 to win thanks to a century from Daryl Mitchell (108) and Tom Blundell’s 96.
Kyle Jamieson then struck early to leave England struggling at 69/4 before they recovered through a 90-run stand involving Root and captain Stokes who made 54.
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