England’s captain Harry Brook. File
| Photo Credit: Emmanual Yogini
England captain Harry Brook said that he expected the Lord’s pitch to be similar to the ones encountered in Birmingham and Cardiff.
“I reckon the new ball will be quite important,” Brook said ahead of Sunday’s (July 19, 2026) third and final ODI versus India here. “I think there’ll be a little bit of assistance for the seam bowlers to start with, and then it generally gets quite slow here.”
“So, rotating the strike is going to be an important part of the game, and likewise with the ball, trying to stop them [India] from rotating the strike.”
Joe Root has been in stellar form for the home team, scoring 76 not out and 99 not out in the first two matches of the series. Brook stated that the 35-year-old talisman, also a fellow Yorkshireman, was the ideal role model for his team.
“We probably have depended on him quite a little bit in recent times in ODI cricket and Test cricket,” said Brook.
“Hopefully, the boys can learn from what he’s doing, myself included, and realise how easy he’s making batting look. He’s arguably the best rotator of the strike that’s ever played the game and he just makes it look so easy.
“If we can add a little bit of Joe Root into our batting, then we’ll definitely be in some strong positions,” added the 27-year-old.
Published – July 19, 2026 02:59 am IST
