Joe Root dedicates his 33rd Test ton to this person!!

Joe Root and England had a brilliant start to the second Test at Lord's against Sri Lanka. Batting first, England piled up 358/7 on the first day of the Test match with Root scoring his 33rd Test ton.

Joe Root scored 143 off 206 balls and in the process equalled Alastair Cook's tally of 33 Test tons. He is now on level terms with his former England teammate.

Another century will make Joe Root the England batter with the most Test tons. He is also closing on overtaking Cook's tally of Test runs as well.

Joe Root has dedicated his record-equalling 33rd Test century to his former batting mentor and friend, the late Graham Thorpe who expired earlier this month.

Reports said that he was struck by a train while his family members said that he died by suicide.

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Joe Root dedicates his ton to Graham Thorpe

"I've been very lucky to work with a lot of people, whether it be senior players, coaches, mentors, and Thorpey was one of those people who offered me so much," Joe Root said after his 143 helped England recover from 130/4 to go to stumps at 358/7 at Lord's on the opening day of the second Test against Sri Lanka.

"It was nice to be able to think of him [Thorpe] in that moment. He's someone I'm sorely going to miss, and who I owe a lot to. He put a lot into my game, into my career, and without his help, I definitely wouldn't be where I am now" the former England skipper added.

Root looked back on the role that Thorpe played in his formative years. Meanwhile, the former England skipper is just 198 runs away from becoming England's leading run-getter in Test cricket.

"The first time I came across him was a second-team game at Stamford Bridge for Yorkshire against Surrey [in 2010]. The following year, I made my way into the County Championship team and he was involved with the England Lions. Before I'd even made a hundred at first-class level, he picked me for a Lions game against Sri Lanka at Scarborough" Root said.

Graham Thorpe Saw Something In Me: Joe Root

The former England skipper also advocated Thorpe for the role he played in his Test debut against India in Nagpur in 2012. Graham Thorpe also became England's batting coach a year after Root's Test debut and watched him grow as an international cricketer over the last decade until his unfortunate passing away.

Talking about the ongoing Test match at Lord's. England on the very first day has already put them in a strong position. After Root's ton, Gus Atkinson scored his maiden Test fifty and at the stumps added an unbeaten 50-run stand with Matthew Pots (20*).

It was a hard grind for the three Sri Lankan pacers Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, and Milan Priyanath Rathnayake who took two wickets each. Spinner Prabhat Jayasuriya took one.

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