Star batter Joe Root has admitted that England’s cricketers faced challenging conditions during their recent match against South Africa. Joe Root stated that he had never encountered conditions like these before, despite having played in hotter and more humid climates.

The Jos Buttler-led team endured a crushing 229-run defeat against South Africa in Mumbai on October 21. South Africa scored 399/7, the highest-ever ODI total against England. Players on both sides grappled with the oppressive heat and “very unhealthy” air quality.

Could See It With Heinrich Klaasen – Joe Root

Joe Root described the immense challenges presented by the heat and smog, likening the experience to “eating the air,” which made it exceptionally hard to breathe.

“I’ve not played in anything like that before. I’ve obviously played in hotter conditions, and probably more humid conditions. But it just felt like you couldn’t get your breath. It was like you were eating the air. It was unique,” said Root.

The 32-year-old noted that even Rashid Khan, who delivered an exceptional performance, encountered challenges and had to exert extra effort to catch his breath.

“I mean you couldn’t get away from it. You walk out onto the field and your shirt’s soaking wet, and you have a lot heavier breath than you would do, and you know you’ve done your fitness and stuff, it’s not like you’re short on that. So you are very aware of it.”

“Rash [Rashid], bless him, I don’t think was great going into the game. He put in a brilliant performance for us. Some of the noises he was making when he was walking back to his mark summed it up, really. Trying to get his breath back. It was tough, but that’s the sort of stuff that you come up against and contend with when you come out to play in India at this time of year.”

Felt Like Quite A Hazy Day – Joe Root

Joe Root was uncertain whether it was the pollution or the heat that made it difficult to breathe during the match. He mentioned the hazy conditions and noted that visibility was challenging on one side of the ground, but not as much on the other.

“Who knows whether it was air quality? I’m not qualified to know. It felt like quite a hazy day, wasn’t it? And you could definitely see that from one side of the ground looking back towards the sun, it was a lot harder visually as well than it was on the other side of the ground. Whether it was air quality or what, it was definitely an experience I’ve not had before.”

Also read: ENG vs BAN: Joe Root Creates History, Becomes England’s Leading Run-Scorer In World Cup

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