England skipper Joe Root finally spoke to the die-hard fan of English cricket team Rob Lewis, who stayed in Sri Lanka for over 10 months to watch England play their rearranged Test series against the Island nation.
In March last year, Lewis had arrived in Sri Lanka to support England, but the series was called off due to coronavirus pandemic. The visitors headed back home, but Lewis decided to stay on the island and waited for England to come back.
After the end of the first Test at Galle International Stadium, Root had a conversation with Lewis. In a video posted by England Cricket on Twitter, the Yorkshire cricketer could be seen speaking to the fan over the phone. While Root was standing near the boundary ropes, Lewis was standing on top of the Galle Fort, which offers a view of the ground from afar.
Root thanked Lewis for the immense support to the England team and appreciated the superfan for making every possible effort to cheer the side.
“Rob, hello mate, how are ya? Very good, thanks. It was nice to see you finally up on the fort,” said Root.
“Mate, it’s an absolute pleasure. That’s why I wanted to come over on behalf of all the lads. We really appreciate your support. It’s an incredible story and journey that you have been on over the last year or so. So more than anything I just wanted to say a massive thank you. We really appreciate you being here and making the effort to come down and support us,” he added.
“It’s a real pleasure for us to be able to enjoy this with you, so thank you very much, mate. It’s nice for us to be able to celebrate together with a win here in Sri Lanka. I’m glad that you enjoyed it. We’ve certainly enjoyed you being there supporting us and singing your heart out as well, so look forward to more of it on Friday. Cheers Rob, thanks a lot, mate,” Root added further.
Here is the video:
Five days graft for the lads 💪
Ten-month wait for a super fan 👏
One very important phone call…@Root66 📲 @elitebandwagon pic.twitter.com/fu1ir1hgwg
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) January 18, 2021
Lewis also reacted after he had a memorable conversation with Root on the phone. He termed it as an unbelievable gesture.
“What an unbelievable gesture. Makes me so proud to support you. Congratulations on your double-ton and deserved man of the match award. See you Friday, Skip. We go again,” tweeted Lewis.
What an unbelievable gesture. Makes me so proud to support you.
Congratulations on your double-ton and deserved man of the match award.
See you Friday, Skip. We go again. #OurCaptain 💙 https://t.co/lDP4mJuEDP
— Rob Lewis (@elitebandwagon) January 18, 2021
England went on to register a victory in the 2-match series opener at Galle by seven wickets to go up 1-0. The final game will start at the same venue from Friday (January 22).
