<p>It’s safe to say tackling ace off-spinner R Ashwin will be a major part of England’s and skipper Joe Root’s plans. Ashwin, probably India’s biggest match-winner in the longer format, has 254 wickets in 43 home Tests. Against England here, the 34-year-old has 42 scalps in nine games.</p>.<p>Root, acutely aware of the massive threat posed by Ashwin, opined that the best way to deal with the Tamil Nadu spinner is play with a positive intent. “Just try and play him (positively). I won’t go out there trying to dominate or defend, I will just try to play the ball that’s coming. If I do that well for a period of time, then I should be able to score some big runs,” said the Yorkshireman. </p>.<p>“But he is a fine bowler, he’s got a great record in India and is probably full of confidence on the back of the series (against Australia). I’ve played against him before, scored some runs. He’s probably got the better of me a couple of times and it’s going to be a great battle within the Test match. They are the contests you want to try and get the better of, but ultimately if you are going to score big runs in any series you have to play all of the bowling well. Just having a ball by ball mentality will probably serve me best throughout.”</p>.<p>Apart from his battle with Ashwin, another sub-plot is contest with Virat Kohli, two of the finest batsmen of this generation. Root said he’s not overly bothered about who is going to score more runs but is focussed on trying to help England win the Anthony de Mello Trophy. “What I will look at is to try and win the series and for us to win the series, it’s going to take 11 guys, actually it’ll take us the whole squad at different points, coming in together and producing something special over some long hard periods of play. Managing pressure for long periods of play. For me it’s going to be about can we collectively pull together, build those partnerships ball by ball and win. That for me is the series.” </p>.<p>India have been termed as the overwhelming favourites for the series but a rebuilding England are on a high themselves. They just blanked Sri Lanka and have won their last 5 matched on the road. Root said the Lanka win has given them a lot of confidence. “On the back of those two games (in Sri Lanka), we’ve got a huge amount of confidence. We are very realistic of where we are as a team, how we are playing our cricket, how we are slowing improving all the time. We know that this is going to be a huge challenge for us but we are relishing the challenge. We are looking forward to it and we just have to concentrate on keep making forward steps as a team. You want to play against the best teams in the world and try and do well in their own conditions. It’s a great opportunity for this group.”</p>
<p>It’s safe to say tackling ace off-spinner R Ashwin will be a major part of England’s and skipper Joe Root’s plans. Ashwin, probably India’s biggest match-winner in the longer format, has 254 wickets in 43 home Tests. Against England here, the 34-year-old has 42 scalps in nine games.</p>.<p>Root, acutely aware of the massive threat posed by Ashwin, opined that the best way to deal with the Tamil Nadu spinner is play with a positive intent. “Just try and play him (positively). I won’t go out there trying to dominate or defend, I will just try to play the ball that’s coming. If I do that well for a period of time, then I should be able to score some big runs,” said the Yorkshireman. </p>.<p>“But he is a fine bowler, he’s got a great record in India and is probably full of confidence on the back of the series (against Australia). I’ve played against him before, scored some runs. He’s probably got the better of me a couple of times and it’s going to be a great battle within the Test match. They are the contests you want to try and get the better of, but ultimately if you are going to score big runs in any series you have to play all of the bowling well. Just having a ball by ball mentality will probably serve me best throughout.”</p>.<p>Apart from his battle with Ashwin, another sub-plot is contest with Virat Kohli, two of the finest batsmen of this generation. Root said he’s not overly bothered about who is going to score more runs but is focussed on trying to help England win the Anthony de Mello Trophy. “What I will look at is to try and win the series and for us to win the series, it’s going to take 11 guys, actually it’ll take us the whole squad at different points, coming in together and producing something special over some long hard periods of play. Managing pressure for long periods of play. For me it’s going to be about can we collectively pull together, build those partnerships ball by ball and win. That for me is the series.” </p>.<p>India have been termed as the overwhelming favourites for the series but a rebuilding England are on a high themselves. They just blanked Sri Lanka and have won their last 5 matched on the road. Root said the Lanka win has given them a lot of confidence. “On the back of those two games (in Sri Lanka), we’ve got a huge amount of confidence. We are very realistic of where we are as a team, how we are playing our cricket, how we are slowing improving all the time. We know that this is going to be a huge challenge for us but we are relishing the challenge. We are looking forward to it and we just have to concentrate on keep making forward steps as a team. You want to play against the best teams in the world and try and do well in their own conditions. It’s a great opportunity for this group.”</p>
