Root's run rampage continues to leave India flat

Continuing the best form of his life, England captain Joe Root has scored his third century of the series against India to move his team into a prime position to win the third Test at Headingley.

Root struck 121 - adding to knocks of 109 and 180 earlier in the series and three other three-figure Test scores in 2021 – as England reached 8-423 at the end of Thursday's second day.

Their massive lead of 345 – and counting – puts them in an overwhelmingly strong position to level the series at 1-1 after India went one-up at Lord's.

Root, whose remarkable scoring run this year contains two double centuries including one against India in Chennai, has now tied England's record for the most Test hundreds in a calendar year. 

No previous Test captain has scored six centuries in a calendar year, with Root's total now 1,398 from 21 innings in 2021, at an average of 69.90.

The all-time record for most runs in a calendar year is the 1,788 struck by Pakistan's Mohamad Yousuf in 2006 from just 11 Tests, as many as Root has already played with another five in front of the Englishman.

"There's so much you can learn as a young player from Joe Root," said England opener Haseeb Hameed, who weighed in with 68.

"He's of the highest class but, for me, what stands out is the simplicity of his game.

"He plays like he has so much time, he's so diligent and also the mental side of things, to turn up and perform in every innings shows how hungry he is."

India, dismissed for 78 in just 40.4 overs on Wednesday, had no answer to Root's array of shotmaking on his home Yorkshire ground and the fans in Headingley's raucous Western Terrace serenaded their man as he hit a boundary into the leg side to reach his century.

Root removed his helmet, leapt into the air and screamed 'yes!' before being lifted off his feet by teammate Jonny Bairstow.

Resuming on 0-120, England lost both openers – Rory Burns (61) and Hameed - before lunch to bring Root to the crease.

He shared a 139-run partnership with Dawid Malan, who was caught behind down the leg side off the final ball of the second session for 70 to end his impressive first Test innings since 2018.

"He is phenomenal isn't he? He just scores runs all the time," Malan said after play.

"You look at all the best players that have played – all the greats, if you want to put it that way – and as soon as you miss your line and your length, they hurt you. Joe is one of those.

"It's great to watch and it's great to have the best seat in the house when he does play as well as that. It's the ease of what he does and the speed at which he does it.

"He just moves his feet so well and his position when he hits the ball is so good...he hits the ball so much later than most people. He always looks to score with intent, you know if you bowl a bad ball he just puts you away."

Bairstow added 29, and both Jos Buttler (7) and Moeen Ali (8) fell cheaply either side of Root getting bowled by Jasprit Bumrah. 

England still moved beyond 400 with a late flurry of runs, with Craig Overton (23) and Ollie Robinson (0) at the crease at stumps.

"Yesterday was pretty much a perfect day and today we were able to build on that," Hameed said. "We are very happy going into tomorrow."

England players wore black armbands in honour of Ted Dexter, the former England captain from the 1960s who died on Wednesday.