IND vs ENG, 2nd Test: Joe Root Leaves Field After Sustaining an Injury on Right Finger

Premier England batter Joe Root sustained a finger injury during fielding on Day 3 of the second Test match against India at Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam. Root got hurt while fielding in the slip as he went off the field to get the treatment in the first session.

The England team confirmed in an official update that Root is being treated for the injury but gave no certain time on when he would return to the field again.

“Joe Root sustained an external blow to his right little finger, attempting a slip catch in the first session of D3. The England medical team will keep him off the field for the time being to treat and ice,” an update was released from the England camp.

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He didn’t come out on the field after Lunch break as Dan Lawrence continued as his substitute. Root’s absence was a big blow for England as he has been one of the key spinners for them in the Test series.

It was the fourth ball of the 18th over when Root attempted Shubman Gill’s catch at the first slip on Tom Hartley’s delivery but failed to grab it and the ball raced away for a boundary. The Englishman hurt his finger.

As of now, Root had bowled only two overs in the second innings before the finger injury cut short his time on the field. Root had picked up figures of 4-79 and 1-41 in the first Test at Hyderabad, which England won by 28 runs.

Meanwhile, England’s James Anderson removed India’s openers and skipper Ben Stokes took a stunning catch as the hosts lost four second-innings wickets before lunch on the third day of the second Test Sunday but extended their lead to 273.

The evergreen Anderson, 41, bowled captain Rohit Sharma without adding to his overnight 13 and then dismissed first-innings hero Yashasvi Jaiswal (17) in a brilliant spell of seam bowling in Visakhapatnam.

India, who trail the five-match series 1-0, reached 130-4 at lunch after starting the day on 28-0, a lead of 143. Shubman Gill, on 60, and Axar Patel, on two, were batting at the break.