Pakistan are dangerous, warns Root

LONDON: After back-to-back defeats at the Ageas Bowl and Lord’s, Pakistan seem down and out going into a must-win game against England at Trent Bridge on Tuesday (tomorrow).

Not even the most ardent of their fans would be betting on Pakistan to win this five-match series after conceding a 2-0 lead but Joe Root warned the hosts on Saturday not to take Azhar Ali and his men for granted.

“They are a very dangerous side with strong players,” Root said after guiding England to a four-wicket victory at Lord’s. “They’ve got the bowlers to win games for them. They have people like Sarfraz who batted well and scored a century. We will make sure that we don’t take it for granted the way they were playing and ease off against them. We got to keep doing exactly what we are making sure when we get opportunities to win we make the most of them.”

Root was also confident that he would be fine for Tuesday’s ODI in Nottingham after a nasty collision with Adil Rashid. The pair collided when attempting to catch a lofted stroke from Hasan Ali, with Root ultimately holding on to the chance despite Rashid sliding into his legs.

“I should be fine for the next game,” he said. “I could see him in the corner of my eye. I’m pretty sure I put my arms out and shouted to say it was my catch but he mustn’t have heard.

“He hit me pretty hard actually. It’s surprising such a little guy would make such a strong tackle but no dramas, nothing serious. We were lucky, really, He nearly head-butted my knee.”