SL vs ENG | Important to have an open mind and take nothing for granted, feels Joe Root

England are looking confident of carrying their new-found consistency in South Africa after a couple of tough years in red-ball cricket as they gear up to face Sri Lanka for a two-game Test rubber. The 3-0 clean sweep on their last visit to the island nations will surely boost the confidence of the Three Lions but skipper Joe Root has a word of advice for his boys.

Root feels that the visitors must not take the hosts for granted over something, the clean sweep, which happened 18 months ago as things seemed to have changed drastically. The Yorkshire lad believes that being open to anything Sri Lanka throws their way is the right way to deal with the visitors who seem to be on the prowl since Mickey Aurthur joined their camp as their head coach.

"It is a different team that we've brought this time around. We're expecting the surfaces to be slightly different, and we're quite open-minded about what to expect. But ultimately it gives an opportunity for some of the other guys to show what they're capable of," Root told Cricbuzz.

"I think it's important to have an open mind coming into this series. If we just went in and expected it to be exactly the same then we could find ourselves getting stuck, and I think it's really important that we play what's right in front of us, and make sure we respect the surface and the opposition. And I'm sure there are one or two guys that want to put their stamp on this team and take it forward."

India’s hammering in New Zealand has thrown open the World Test Championship which seemed like a one-way affair prior to it and Root is looking to use the Sri Lanka series as a springboard to boost England’s campaign who are currently fourth in the table. Root also feels that winning the series in such extreme conditions will prepare the side for the upcoming battles in the Championship, namely the away series in India and the Ashes Down Under.

"I think for us building towards that Test Championship final would be a huge achievement. It's something that we're aiming for as a team, and obviously, we're also always judged on how well we do in The Ashes as well, so it's a long process in making sure that we're always trying to peak when we're going up against Australia and travelling over there.

"Long-term a big focus for us is trying to get some consistency and how we want to go about playing our cricket. Similarly, with the guys that we're going to be selecting, it's a real opportunity for them to long-term take this team up the rankings, and hopefully, play those big moments and big games that really matter."