Would have been 1-0 up had we been good enough on the field — Root

Nottingham, Aug. 9 (IANS): England captain Joe Root expressed lament over his team dropping catches and missing run-out opportunities during the first Test against India here at the Trent Bridge.

“If we’d have been good enough in the field and taken those then we could have been sat here one-nil up, but unfortunately the weather has won,” said Root later as the match ended in a draw after the fifth and final day’s play was washed out.

England dropped three catches and missed a few run-out chances in India’s first innings.

“We certainly put the practice in. We catch a lot of balls in practice. It’s about trying to have an element of calm and trust and belief in your own ability. That can be hard in pressure situations,” added Root.

“As a player, you just need to make sure you’re not panicking. You need to remind yourself that you’re doing all the hard yards and making sure that, when the next opportunity comes around, you’re giving yourself the best chance,” added the England captain who scored a century in the second innings.

“Fielding at slip it is such a mental thing. If you can find a way of staying relaxed and trusting your technique, then you’re certainly in a better place to take the next opportunity.”

England made 183 and 303 in the two innings while India scored 278 and were 52/1 before the match was called off.