Root 254 hands England total control

Old Trafford 2016 was the occasion on which Joe Root, England cricket’s cheeky chappie, reacquainted himself with the more enduring fulfilment of Test cricket. Having put his Test summer back on course on the opening day of the second Investec Test, he completed the journey on the second to lead England to what is surely an impregnable first-innings score against Pakistan.

For ten-and-a-quarter hours, Root not only conquered the Pakistan attack that had overcome England at Lord’s, but also explored something meaningful about himself. Impeccable on the first day and indefatigable on the second, the batsman who turned his place at No 4 into a crusade for batting freedom indicated that he can lay claim to the mantle of greatness at No 3.

Pakistan needed a solid response in the 24 overs before the close. Instead, wearied by 152.2 overs in the field, they had a nightmarish time courtesy of three wickets for Chris Woakes, who is making such an impact on the series that more flamboyant figures would by now be hailed as rising heroes and about to launch a range of clothing on the back of it; even he must find it all quite agreeable in an understated sort of way.

For 12 overs, Pakistan proceeded calmly enough, but Woakes had Mohammad Hafeez loosely caught at second slip with his sixth delivery and added a return catch in his fourth over when Azhar Ali’s lopsided push suggested he was suffering from subsidence.

Pakistan’s unhappy day was complete when Younis Khan produced a characteristic leaping fend at a short, leg-side delivery from Ben Stokes to be caught at the wicket before the nightwatchman Rahat Ali proved ill-equipped for the task, giving Woakes a third wicket as an agitated response to a bouncer ended up at short leg. Shan Masood batted through for 30 not out, but even he had one or two hairy moments.

Woakes now has a Test batting average markedly higher than his Test bowling average which is always a good look for an allrounder. There is no bombast about him, but England’s cricketing public is finally beginning to appreciate his talents.

But the day again largely belonged to Root. His 254 was the third highest England Test score against Pakistan and the second highest by an England batsman at Old Trafford. On a pristine batting pitch, he emphasised perfection first, ingenuity second, as he secured a second Test double hundred.

Only in the final slog did his reckoning desert him, Wahab Riaz deceiving him with a slower offcutter which he hauled high into the leg side for Mohammad Hafeez to take a fine running, diving catch from deep midwicket

He benefited from two moments of fortune before lunch – the sort of luck he had complained (with only partial justification) in the build-up to the Test that he had been lacking.

On 143, he botched a pull against Mohammad Amir, the sort of stroke that caused his downfall at Lord’s, but the ball fell short of the fielder. Root and Amir – his most dangerous adversary – smiled as if sharing a private joke. Then on 159, an edge against the legspinner Yasir Shah died just in front of Younis at slip, somewhat assisted by Younis’ stiff-backed response.

But the overriding impression was of a batsman of undoubted class and sure touch who had once again attuned himself to the rhythm and demands of Test cricket. Ironically, his 200 was brought up by his most creative moment, whipping a reverse sweep against Yasir to the third man boundary.

Pakistan must be concerned about the workload being undertaken by a four-strong attack. Amir needed treatment on what seemed to be a jarred knee on a hard, unforgiving surface and, as for Yasir, a potentially decisive figure in this series, he clocked up figures of 54-6-213-1. Root’s decisive footwork against him was a large factor in that.

Even before Pakistan’s collapse, there had been enough fleeting signs to suggest that this pitch will eventually turn towards the bowlers occasional moments of uneven bounce, such as the ball that bowled Alastair Cook on the opening day, and one or two signs of turn for Yasir. But England’s progress was blissful as they added 219 in the first two sessions for the loss of Woakes, a 30-carat nightwatchman, in the morning and Stokes in the afternoon.

It was four overs before the close of the first day when Woakes was given the chance of some nightwatchman duties. He was wise to leap at the opportunity on such a welcoming batting surface. While Woakes prospered, Stokes, the allrounder protected by the change of order, wandered around the balcony, checked his bat, chewed his fingernails. The nightwatchman who seems a convenience to a batsman late on one day can be a hindrance to personal ambition on the next.

It was Woakes who signalled England’s intent on the second morning, outscoring Root by a considerable margin. He cut and drove Rahat Ali to pep up the opening overs, required treatment for a blow on the elbow, and found time to log his first six in Test cricket when he fashioned an uppercut over the slips off Amir. He fell for 58 from 104 balls, 13 minutes before lunch, when Yasir forced a return catch from around the wicket.

Stokes made an irritated exit on 34 when he was given out caught down the leg side on review, the third umpire Joel Wilson concluding that the ball had feathered his glove as he pulled at Wahab Riaz. It was a borderline decision – Snicko offered more convincing evidence than Hotspot – but sometimes borderline decisions are what you are landed with and it is hyper-critical to condemn either the system or the umpires involved for an unavoidable state of affairs.

Jonny Bairstow also gave England impetus as Root, partly through fatigue, partly through a desire to see things through to the declaration made only 41 in the middle session. Bairstow was reprieved on 9 by the wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed and, if the initial edge off Yasir was tough, the ball happened to bounce up so invitingly for him that two further grab-and-goes before the ball hit the deck were hard to explain away.

That left Root and Bairstow to rattle up a century stand, a post-tea slog bringing 56 in 6.2 overs. Root entered the Test having converted only one of his last 10 Test half-centuries into hundreds and he was in the mood to make someone pay. Misbah-ul-Haq, a Pakistan captain committed to playing the game in a fine spirit, must have got sick of congratulating him.