Root does what Root does
Two days after being handed the England Test captaincy again, Joe Root walked out at Edgbaston and made a run chase look like a net session. His unbeaten 58 carried Welsh Fire home against Birmingham Phoenix on Saturday with four balls to spare, and it lifted the Fire to joint top of The Hundred.
Phil Salt set the tone at the other end, 46 from 36 balls with four sixes, before Mitch Owen trapped him in front. The platform was built. Root only had to finish it, and finishing games is rather his specialty.
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A Phoenix side running out of road
Birmingham never posted enough. They managed 137 for 9, with Joe Clarke the only batter to find any rhythm at 35. The middle of their innings fell apart on a slow pitch, two run-outs among the damage, while Jordan Cox behind the stumps took two sharp catches to keep the pressure on. Jude Bellingham watched from the stands as a co-owner, though there was little for the home crowd to cheer.
Welsh Fire leaned on five bowlers, all internationals, with Marco Jansen and Lockie Ferguson claiming two wickets each. Depth like that is why they fancy their chances of turning Cardiff into a fortress down the stretch.
The finish
It got tight late. When Saqib Mahmood bowled Cox, the Fire still needed six from seven balls. Root answered with a lofted scoop off a good length, the shot of a batter entirely at ease. “That is how you want to play cricket, being ruthless and getting it done at the end,” he said afterward.
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