England beat Pakistan by 194 runs in the second Test at Lord’s on August 30, 2026. Joe Root scored 28 runs over two innings in the match and has battled with lbw dismissals throughout the summer series. During the 2026 summer series, Root was lbw seven times in nine dismissals across four innings, scoring 265 runs at a 29.44 average.
Root believes that the seam on modern Dukes balls has been strengthened with lacquer to keep the ball from deforming. He acknowledged the lack of tangible evidence for his assertion, but speculated that the manufacturer may have made the adjustment to lengthen the ball’s lifespan during matches. Three of his seven LBW dismissals this summer came in two Tests at Lord’s, where he was removed by Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali, following an earlier LBW dismissal by New Zealand’s Nathan Smith in June 2026.
Jajodia’s Response and Manufacturing Explanation
Dilip Jajodia, the owner of British Cricket Balls Ltd, categorically denied Joe Root statement.
The manufacturer has denied making any recent changes to the ball’s specifications or composition. Jajodia noted that cricket balls are created from natural raw materials, which have intrinsic diversity from batch to batch.
The Dukes ball manufacturing method uses hides collected from Aberdeen Angus calves raised in Scotland and tanned in Chesterfield. The raw material is then shipped to sewing plants in India and Pakistan before returning to England to be finished at the Walthamstow factory. Jajodia stated that issues about ball durability have persisted for many years and are not a new phenomenon.
