Nasser Hussain believes Joe Root in the same league as Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, and Kane Williamson

Nasser Hussain reckons there’s no doubt Joe Root is in the same league as the modern-day batting greats - Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson, and Steve Smith.

By his consistent standards, the England captain had a lean patch in 2020, as he managed just 464 runs in Test cricket at an average of 42.18.

However, Joe Root has been in sublime form this year. He scored 228 and 186 in the two Tests in Sri Lanka last month before making his 100th Test appearance memorable by crafting a well-century in the series opener against India on Friday. Playing only his third Test in 2021, the right-handed batsman has already amassed 554 runs at a phenemenal average of 138.5.

Special day.Special innings.Special player.#R100T 👏

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) February 5, 2021

Writing in his column for Sky Sports, Nasser Hussain, who heaped praise on Joe Root, also mentioned that even during his lean patch, the 30-year-old averaged over 40.

“It’s fitting that Joe Root proved he’s a true great by scoring a hundred in his 100th Test. Some people were starting to doubt if he belongs to that group of Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson and Steve Smith when he went through a lean patch last year – but don’t forget he was still averaging 40 in that period!” Nasser Hussain wrote.

Joe Root scored 128* on the first day of the first Test in Chennai and will look to make the Indian bowlers toil hard on Saturday too.

Joe Root benefitted from self-analysis during coronavirus break: Nasser Hussain

Joe Root has mastered the art of playing spin bowling, and after the first day’s play in Chennai, the England skipper said he made specific changes to his technique, which has worked in his favour.

Nasser Hussain added that Root is reaping the rewards from his introspection and self-analysis during the coronavirus-induced break.

“During the long break enforced by lockdown and the pandemic he thought ‘how am I going to go back to being the Joe Root that I was?’ He watched videos of various people and looked at his game, and three hundreds in a row suggests he’s analysed his game pretty well!” Nasser Hussain added.

Whether England post a big first innings total will largely depend on how Joe Root fares in the second day.

A day we will never forget.What will tomorrow bring?🇮🇳 #INDvENG 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 pic.twitter.com/WzLokC7aTY

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) February 5, 2021