London [UK], September 10 : England star batter Joe Root was full of praise for compatriot and Yorkshire teammate Harry Brook, saying that "he makes his life so much easier", comparing his presence on the crease to that of legendary Kevin Pietersen, a swashbuckling right-hander for the Three Lions across all formats.
Root was speaking on the 'Stick to Cricket' podcast, hosted by former England cricketing stars Michael Vaughan, Alastair Cook, Phil Tufnell and David Lloyd.
Speaking on the podcast, Root said about Brook, who stitched a memorable partnership for England with centuries during the fifth Test at The Oval against India recently.
"Harry Brook, he makes my life so much easier, the amount of pressure he just puts on bowlers. When KP was at the crease and his aura, his presence was quite intimidating, whereas with Harry, it is more about how he can hit you anywhere at any time," he said.
"You just do not know when it is going to come. As a bowler, you think if they hit the top of off stump, it can either go over fine leg or it could go mid-off. You're batting at the other end thinking this is Christmas because there is a lot of people out there trying to control the rate and in many ways they stop trying to get you out, they try to stop you scoring," Root said.
"When you have got that mentality, or feel you have got that mentality against you as a batting group, it makes life a lot easier. There's not that threat there from the opposition," he concluded.
The 26-year-old Yorkshire batter is slowly turning into one of England's most reliable and destructive all-format batters, with 4,688 runs in 109 matches at an average of 43.40, with a strike rate of 97.62, 11 centuries, 23 fifties and a best score of 317 to his name.
Brook at his most prolific in Test cricket, in which he made his debut in 2022, scoring 2,820 runs at an average of 57.55 and a strike rate of 87.52, with 10 centuries, 13 fifties and a best score of 317.
He rose to prominence as the captain of the England side during the U19 World Cup 2018, scoring 239 runs in five innings at an average of 119.50 and a strike rate of 115.45, with a century and two half-centuries.
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