Joe Root, born on 30th December 1990, hails from a rich cricketing background. His grandfather captained Rotherham CC in the Yorkshire League for several seasons whilst his younger brother, Billy, is a regular with Glamorgan. In addition to being awarded a Daily Telegraph scholarship at the 2005 Bunbury festival, Root also attracted cricket scholarships at Workshop College, the school he attended, and Yorkshire Cricket academy. The gifted batsman celebrated his Yorkshire second Team debut in July 2007 with a fifty.

There was no looking back as Root's meteoric rise continued unabated. A thoroughly emphatic Man of the Series performance for England Under-19 against Bangladesh Under-19 in 2010 witnessed the 'boy wonder' land a three-year professional contract with Yorkshire. Having marked his County Championship debut at the onset of 2011, Root established himself as a reliable batsman. The big breakthrough ensued in the following season when Root cracked an undefeated 222 in the County Championship encounter against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl.