The Ashes 2019: Steve Smith and Joe Root out to ensure bowlers don’t have it all their own way

As the premier batsmen in the Ashes, Steve Smith and Joe Root have the burden of expectation. But judging by the opening two days of the series, they are more than ready to deliver.

Joe Root showed his class with an Ashes half-century.

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The personal battle between Aussie superstar Steve Smith and Ashes rival Joe Root has heated up as the England captain responded to Smith’s day one heroics with a vital knock of his own.

Root had set the tone for the series, and his own showdown with Smith, with a cheeky pre-series sledge of the man regarded in Australia as the best since Sir Donald Bradman.

Smith, Root argued, had performed well in the 2015 Ashes series in England when groundskeepers delivered flat pitches – such as at Lord’s when the precocious star plundered 215 in a heavy victory.

Joe Root showed his class with an Ashes half-century.

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But when there was juice there for the quicks and some seam movement? Not so much, Root claimed.

Smith countered that with a glorious 144 at Edgbaston to land the first blow in an engrossing Ashes contest with England’s top-ranked batsman.

Root was less forthcoming when asked about the importance of winning his personal duel - preferring to play a dead bat as if he’d been presented a dicey inswinger from James Pattinson.

“I wouldn’t say there’s for me, personally, a personal battle,” Root explained.

“If I can score more runs than (Smith) it gives us a good chance but it’ll be the same if Jason (Roy) scores more runs than him.

“It doesn’t really matter, collectively as long as we’re outperforming them, scoring more runs than them then we give ourselves the best chance of winning.”

Steve Smith dominated on day one.

With respect to Roy, a bona fide one-day star and emerging Test player, few would expect the opener to outpoint Australia’s batting inspiration.

As their teams’ premier batsmen, Smith and Root have on their shoulders the burden of expectation.

In what is anticipated to be a low-scoring series dominated by the bowlers, whoever comes out on top between Root and Smith will go a long way towards shifting the balance of power towards their team.

And put simply, beyond Smith the Australian batting lineup looks decidedly flimsy – and he answered the call when the first challenge was presented.

Root is a different player to Smith and perhaps not in the same class – his conversion record of 50s to 100s pales in comparison to the Australian’s, and Smith has put daylight between their records in recent years.

Joe Root helped prove a stabalising force for Rory Burns.

But what is undeniable is his importance to England’s top order.

Root himself recognised that this series, and finally relented to coach Trevor Bayliss’ plea to push up the order to first drop.

After steadfastly refusing to move from his preferred spot at No.4 in the order, Root confidently strode to the crease in the eighth over with England 1-22 following Roy’s dismissal for 10.

England has built a reputation in recent times as a team with a flimsy top order who can all too easily find themselves 3-30 and begging for a bailout from its powerful middle order.

Root was determined to change that.

And on day two at Edgbaston he was able to, navigating the tricky period when the new ball was moving enough under overcast skies to trouble any batsman.

His experience was surely a calming influence on Burns, too, as the unconventional left-hander himself silenced his critics with a career-defining innings and his maiden Test century.

In falling for 57, Root may have again failed to convert his positive start into a big score – he now has 42 Test half-centuries, but has passed three figures on just 16 occasions – but his steady hand helped guide England out of dangerous territory.

In doing so he ensured that while Smith may have landed the early punches in this contest, Root has proven he’s well equipped to take the fight to the former Australian skipper across the five-Test series.

Originally published as The Ashes 2019: Steve Smith and Joe Root out to ensure bowlers don’t have it all their own way