Pakistan fast bowler Wahab Riaz has labelled England’s batting order “fragile” and believes his side has the bowling arsenal capable of dismantling their opponents on their home turf.
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Root insists he is mentally prepared for his shift up England’s order from four to three, hailing coach Trevor Bayliss and captain Alastair Cook for handing him early warning of the move.
He is hopeful that his modest domestic season could translate into bigger numbers for England.
“It’s taking a bit of time to settle in, but I’m really excited about the prospect of playing for England and can’t wait to meet up with the rest of the team and get involved”. I faced him in the Pakistan Super League in Dubai this year.
“We will support him and we really want him to do well”.
Amir’s return to the Test format is set to take place during the first match against England next week at the same venue which saw his downfall six years ago – at Lord’s, the home of cricket.
May 02: Amir is selected selection for the England tour, leaving him on course to make a Test return on July 14 at Lord’s – the scene of his crime almost six years earlier.
Root has been promoted one place up the order following former number three Nick Compton’s decision to take time out from cricket following a poor series against Sri Lanka.
“I don’t think I have got the power (to control crowd reaction)”.
Having been banned for five years, Amir is now back in the fold, and will spearhead the Pakistan attack at the scene of his faux pas six years previously.
“He is the backbone of the England team and getting him out early will put the pressure on England”.
“Then they calmed down and now they are trying to get along with him”.
Asif says he took inspiration from Nelson Mandela and Mohammad Ali during his six-month prison term in the United Kingdom as he focused on rebuilding his life and career.
Still just 24 and stepping up his return to the sport, Amir could pose England serious problems this summer, with Root remaining wary over his influence.
Mohammad Amir will be the only story anyone wants to tell or hear at Lord’s next week.
“He has obviously had a tough road since then”.
Where those lines of communication are concerned, England should be well served by the quicks at their disposal, seeing as Broad and Jake Ball have an existing relationship from their time at Nottinghamshire, while both Finn and Roland-Jones play most of their cricket for Middlesex at Lord’s and so are well used to the vagaries of the slope.
Their all-time leading wicket-taker will be a very signifcant absentee, should his stress fracture of the shoulder blade in his bowling arm keep him out for long.
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James Anderson should have been named in the England squad for the start of the series against Pakistan on Thursday and given more of a chance to prove his recovery from injury, according to Stuart Broad.
