Strauss' successor at the top of the order – Nick Compton or Joe Root? – Part II
Continued from Part I...
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MJ-Lumb-c1981 Root
The 21-year-old right-handed batsman plays county cricket for Yorkshire. Though he has just two years of experience at first-class level, the opening batsman boasts an impressive average of 38.01 in 36 first class matches played so far. Since making his first class debut with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Yorkshire-c867 in May 2010, the right-hander has compiled a tally of 2015 runs, including four hundreds and eight fifties.
His best performance in four-day cricket is a 222 not out, which he recorded against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Hampshire-c789 during a drawn LV = County Championship Division Two match, at Southampton, in July this year. Root’s stupendous knock was studded with three sixes and 26 muscular fours.
In the recently concluded County Championship Division Two, the rookie top-order batsman scored 738 runs from 19 innings, at an average of 43.41. The tally included two centuries and an equal number of half centuries. The impressive 222-run knock against Hampshire in July played a key role in earning Root selectors’ nod for the national assignment.
What gives the rookie Yorkshire batsman an edge over his competitor is him being a specialist opener, unlike Compton who is a general top-order batsman. Joe Root has been consistently opening the innings for Yorkshire and knows the pressure of facing the new ball, building an innings from scratch and above all making sensible shot selections against the new ball in the longest format of the game.
Root is a prodigiously talented cricketer, who has been showing promise since teenage. He was http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Lions-c808 squad for a while. Both these assignments add some international experience to Root’s résumé.
Root's recent form in the county championship has not been ideal, especially when compared to Nick Compton’s stupendous average of 99.25, and is probably going to be a deciding factor in India.
Root’s inexperience compared to Compton’s eight-year-long cricketing career could also reflect negatively on his part. However, his young age is a good thing, as he has room to gain more experience at the domestic level and make a strong entrance on the international scene. Even if he fails to impress in the first go round, he will have plenty of time to go back to basics and make a strong comeback. But if the rookie Yorkshire man managed to come good in his first attempt, he can make a formidable opening duo with Alastair Cook.
Compton himself is raring to go, and has been fine-tuning himself against spin bowling since getting the national call-up last month.
"I have been training hard and working on my fitness. In my batting I am trying to replicate the sorts of angles and situations that I might find out in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Somerset-c843 Cricket's website.
"I have been facing http://www.senore.com/Cricket/James-Dermott-Monteith-c65601 in the nets at Lord's, which has been very good practice for me because there is going to be plenty of spin bowling to face out there."
"I have had a couple of sessions with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Graham-c60529 at Lord's. In between that I have been trying to give myself a bit of a break before setting off because it will be a tough trip," the lanky right-hander added further.
Conclusion:
Based on recent performances and the experience in the longest format of the game, we would recommend Somerset’s Nick Compton to pad up against the potent Indian spin attack. His eight-year experience would be vital on a crucial tour of India.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article are solely of the writer’s and do not reflect bettor.com’s official editorial policy.
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