Ashes 2021: Joe Root gets hit in groin; shoos away Spidercam while checking guard | WATCH

England skipper Joe Root found himself in a tough situation during the Ashes 2021 second Test at the Adelaide Oval after being painfully hit in the groin on the first ball of the 4th innings.

Left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc bowled a ferocious delivery that went on to beat the batter’s defence. The ball angled in quite a bit and Root was caught napping. The England skipper laid on the ground for quite some time as the physio came out to check on his well-being.

The English captain showed his presence of mind and asked the Spidercam to go away while he was checking his guard. However, Root showed immense courage and resumed his knock, conjuring praises from his teammates and the crowd. But to his dismay, he got out in the last over of the day.

Australia's Mitchell Starc found his outside edge and Root had to walk back after scoring 24 off 67. Starc bowled a full-length and it moved away from after pitching. Root poked at it tentatively and Alex Carey took a neat catch behind the stumps.

AUS vs ENG Ashes 2021: Ponting asks Root to take cue from Labuschagne and Smith

Earlier, former Aussie skipper, Ricky Ponting, asked the England skipper, Joe Root, to take a leaf out of the books of Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith in order to improve his concentration.

“It’s got to be a mental thing. There’s no technical error in his last two dismissals that has led to him getting out. It’s got to be him being not quite switched on enough for the ball he’s got out to. Marnus and Smith are really good examples of how they can find a way to be so switched on for so long,” Ponting was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

“It is a concentration thing with Joe and captaincy probably doesn’t help either, (spending) long periods of time in the field when your team is not going so well. They haven’t gone so well of late with their Test results. All of those things take a toll on you,” Ponting said.

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