Joe Root equals Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag to smash fifty-plus scores in 11 consecutive Tests

Reuters

New Delhi: It was a historic day at Edgbaston on Thursday as England were in the pink on Day 1 of their first day-night Test match. Skipper Joe Root along with Alastair Cook smashed respective tons as the hosts 348 at the loss of three, against West Indies. Root's 136 put him alongside former cricketers Vivian Richards, Virender Sehwag, for registering at least one 50-plus scores in 11 consecutive Test matches.

Opting to bat first after winning the toss, English openers Alastair Cook and Mark Stoneman stepped in. The Pink ball swung in and there was an instant moment of joy among the tourists. Kemar Roach (2/72) delivered a stunner in the third over to dismiss Stoneman (8). Few overs later Miguel Cummins (1/61) trapped Tom Westly (8) between the legs dismissing the youngster following a successful review.

Joe Root walked in next to join Cook at the crease as the duo mastered the pink ball to stitch a phenomenal 248-run stand for the third wicket. The former captain remained unbeaten at 153 runs from 276 deliveries, cracking 23 boundaries. Root, on the other hand, laced 22 boundaries and no sixes to notch up 136 runs before getting outfoxed by Roach in the third session of the day.

En route to his 13th Test hundred, Root became the sixth batsman to hit a 50-plus score in 11 consecutive Test matches. His name now stands along side West Indies legend Vivian Richards, former Indian openers Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag and Bangladeshi lad Mominul Haque. The English skipper is now, one behind current record holder AB de Villiers, who has it in 12 consecutive Tests. It was also fifth consecutive 50-plus score since his debut as a captain, thus joining his teammate Alastair Cook. Peter May leads the chart with eight such scores under his belt.

Apart from it, his 189 ball-136 was his third consecutive Test ton in the first Test match in the series and fifth overall. With it, Root is also the first English captain since Graham Gooch to notch up a century at Edgbaston.

The 248-run stand woven by Cook and Root is also the highest partnership accounting day-night Tests. They edged past Azhar Ali and Sami Aslam's 215 runs made against Windies in Dubai. The stand is also the highest for third wicket at Edgbaston.

England, in total, amassed 348 runs at the loss of three wickets at the end of the first day. Cook and Dawid Malan (28) will resume Day 2 of their first day-night Test series against West Indies at Edgbaston, today.