With England set to lock horns against India in a five-match Test series that is set to commence from June 20, Joe Root believes that the Men in Blue have all the 'bases' covered and it will be 'fantastic' to play against them. After the conclusion of their assignment against India, the Three Lions will be taking on Australia in an away Ashes series that will begin from November 21.
With the first Test against India beckoning, Root believes that the series is an 'epic' opportunity for the side to impress and further labelled the Men in Blue as a 'brilliant' team. He also expressed his excitement about both of England's upcoming Test assignments.
"You can only be excited. These are the series you play for. The opportunities in front of us are epic. You know The Ashes is coming and you will be asked about it. People will be trying to relate stuff in the India series to that, but you have a job to do against a brilliant team," Root said on Sky Sports.
"You look at India's progression as a team across all formats, and they have all bases covered - great seam attack, talented batters and a very strong spin attack. They are going to compete anywhere in the world, but our record at home makes for a fantastic series. We will go into it with confidence but also with a huge amount of respect for what they will bring," he added.
Root talked about his journey with the national team
Root also reflected on his journey with the England cricket team which began 13 years ago. He called himself 'lucky' to be able to represent the national team and added that it is fascinating for him to play across sensational venues around the world and experience various diffferent cultures.
"I am not saying sticks in the ground with a taped-up tennis ball pretending you are at the MCG or Lord's, but waking up, opening the curtains and praying it is not raining so you can play that day and trying to harness those feelings," Root stated.
"I think how lucky I am to play for England. You play at amazing venues around the world, experiencing different cultures and everything else the sport has to offer - friendships, opportunities. Trying to keep a broad mind on those things is more of a motivator than trying to plan too far ahead. Soak in and enjoy the good times," he added.
The England batter has been a key figure in the side's Test set-up for many years now and will have a big role to play in the series against India and Australia. He can turn out to be a major headache for bowlers from both teams, who may find it very hard to dismiss the 34-year-old.
Root will also be aiming to reach closer to Sachin Tendulkar's tally of runs in the longest format with England's upcoming Tests. He recently surpassed the 13,000-run mark in red-ball cricket but will still need to score a lot more if he wants to surpass Tendulkar's record of 15,921 runs.