"Joe Root is getting pinned down" - Indian spin legend reacts to star England batter's flop show in ENG vs IND 2025 series

Indian spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin believes Joe Root's underwhelming form is a big concern for England going into the upcoming third Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against India. He opined that the visitors will be firm favorites to win the clash if Root fails to get big runs under his belt.

Root has amassed 109 runs across four innings at an average of 36.33. He has crossed the 50-run mark just once in the series. The ace batter registered scores of 22 and 6 in England's 336-run defeat to India at Edgbaston, Birmingham, in the recently concluded second Test.

Reacting to Root's flop show, Ashwin said in the latest YouTube video of his channel, 'Ash Ki Baat' (from 20:57):

"England's bowling is looking very pedestrian. On the other hand, Joe Root is getting pinned down. Can Joe Root make those runs? If Joe Root makes runs, England have a chance; otherwise, India are firm favorites going into this Test match."

Ashwin also spoke about Indian pacer Akash Deep being a major threat to England opener Ben Duckett. He opined that the right-arm pacer will trouble left-handed batters from around the wicket because of his angles.

"For Ben Duckett, Akash Deep is a nightmare from around the stumps. He is a far better bowler against left-handers and is a nightmare because his angle and alignment are straight, and the ball comes both ways after pitching on the off-stump," he added.

Duckett was the hero for the hosts in the Test series opener at Headingley, Leeds. He scored 62 runs in the team's first innings. The southpaw stole the show with his batting exploits in the final innings, helping his team chase a mammoth 371-run target with a stunning 149-run knock.

However, Duckett struggled to counter Akash in the subsequent fixture. He finished with scores of 0 and 25 and was dismissed by Akash in both innings.

Akash was not part of India's playing XI for the first Test. Coming in for Jasprit Bumrah, who was rested for the second fixture, he bagged a splendid 10-wicket haul, which included a six-fer in the fourth innings.

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"England do not have an answer to how they will take 20 wickets" - Ravichandran Ashwin on the home team's bowling attack

Ravichandran Ashwin reckoned that the current English bowling attack wasn't capable of taking 20 wickets in a Test. He reckoned that the team's bowlers could find some success only if the pitch had a lot of assistance for fast bowlers.

He said in the same video (from 24:03):

"England do not have an answer to how they will take 20 wickets. How are they going to take 20 wickets? I don't know, I can't see it. The only way they can do it is if there is some help from the pitch."

Hailing India as favorites to win at Lord's, the 38-year-old added (from 28:22):

"I will go with 70-30 favoring India, if not more. If England have to pose a challenge, their bowling will have to come to the party."

The third Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy will be played at Lord's, London, from July 10 to 14. The five-match series is evenly poised at 1-1.