Rajkot: England debutant Haseeb Hameed’s decision to opt for the DRS for his LBW decision was Joe Root’s fault, the latter confirmed after the end of Day 1 of the first Test between India and England in Rajkot, on Wednesday.
Hameed was trapped LBW by Ashwin earlier in the day. While the umpire had adjudged the 19-year-old to be out, Hameed decided to go for the Decision Review System (DRS). However, the ball tracking technology clearly showed that Ashwin’s delivery would have gone on to hit the off-stump.
After the end of the day’s play Root admitted that he had in fact advised Hameed to review the decision. “Yeah it was my fault,” said Root when asked about the incident, after the match.
Root was all praise for the 19-year-old debutant, who scored a steady 31 from 82 balls, on his first innings in international cricket.
“He (Hameed) played extremely well, and looked very comfortable in a rather difficult environment,” said Root.
Root, who himself went on to steady the England innings, forming a 179-run partnership with Moeen Ali, went on to say that Hameed looks more like an experienced batsman, rather than a debutant.
“When you watch him practice, its like he’s played 50-60 Tests,” root said later, while speaking to Sky Sports. “He’s very matured. From this side (non-striker’s end) it didn’t feel like anything fazed him.”
