Former Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt has heaped praise on English batsman Joe Root after he scored a fantastic century in the second Test against the West Indies. He praised the batsman for prioritising the longest format of the game and also playing in the domestic circuit despite being the best batsman.

England batsman Joe Root is undoubtedly one of the greatest cricket batsmen of all time. In the conditions of England, where batting is difficult, the batsman has been sensational and is among the best players from the UK to have played the game.

Joe Root has been England’s consistent batsman in the longest format of the game and his incredible run of form continued in the ongoing Test series against the West Indies. The batsman racked up a sensational century in the second game which was held at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham.

Joe Root hit his 32nd century in a Test, finishing off an innings of 122 runs off 178 balls. He also hit 10 fours during his delivery and is just a ton away from equalling Alastair Cook’s record of most centuries for the team in the longest format of the game.

Salman Butt praised Joe Root for his work ethic and highlighted that his game is based on a complete development platform. He highlighted how the English batsman plays county cricket when he is free and the reason behind that is that he prioritises Test cricket. Speaking in a video posted on his YouTube channel, he explained:

“They play a lot of cricket and they prioritise Test cricket. So their game is based on a complete development platform. And a complete development platform is long-term cricket. They play first-class cricket, they play county cricket whenever they have free time. They also play Test cricket. They play a five-match Test series either in Australia or India. They also play Test cricket with other countries.

“According to their priorities, this is correct. It’s something normal that you see from Joe Root or Alistair Cook. Or Jimmy Anderson. So you can guess the priority they have in Test cricket. And they leave the IPL, the Australian players also leave the IPL to go to the Ashes. So they know that whatever they think comes first, they prioritise it.”

The platform they are built on is long cricket – Salman Butt

Salman Butt further spoke about how Virat Kohli and Joe Root made a strong comeback after facing a slump in their careers. While he termed the English batsman as an outstanding cricketer, he highlighted that he is consistent and more disciplined. He compared Root’s work ethic to cricket in Pakistan and pointed out that the essence of cricket is weakening. He explained:

“And that’s why their cricket is also great. And there are fluctuations in every career. Ups and downs. For 2-3 years, Virat Kohli couldn’t score a hundred. He stopped scoring a hundred. He started again. Similarly, Joe Root’s career also had a downturn. But since he picked up, he is scoring a hundred again. So they are exceptional cricketers. But at the end of the day, what you see is that they are human. And yes, they are exceptional human beings.

“They are more consistent, more disciplined, they apply their technique better and that is why there is a difference in their performance as well. I think they are exceptional cricketers. The platform they are built on is long cricket and that is why there is a difference between us and them. Our platform is very small, T20, and the core of our cricket is weakening.”