England captain Joe Root defends dropping Ollie Pope for Moeen Ali

  • Captain says ‘it doesn’t take just 11 guys’ to beat India
  • Sam Curran replaces injured Chris Woakes at the Ageas Bowl

Joe Root has defended the decision to drop Ollie Pope just three innings into his Test career, insisting the call was based solely on tactics and that the 20-year-old must buy into the squad mentality the captain is trying to foster.

Doubts over the ability of Ben Stokes to bowl his usual workloads, amid a continuing knee problem, have led to England bolstering their attack for today’s fourth Test with India, a match that could see the hosts wrap up the series with a game to spare.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2POI8Y4
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