Stuart Broad and James Anderson were desperate to prove Michael Vaughan wrong says Joe Root

JOE ROOT revealed how stinging criticism helped motivate England to a crushing Second Test victory.

Root said bowlers Stuart Broad and James Anderson were desperate to prove people wrong after ex-captain Michael Vaughan suggested one of them should be axed.

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Broad took six wickets in the match and Anderson five as England thrashed Pakistan at Headingley by an innings and 55 runs with two days to spare.

Skipper Root said: “I asked the group to play with pride and passion and I think you saw that on the field.

“An element of that comes out of criticism, you want to prove people wrong.”

It ended a run of eight Tests without a win and came a week after England were humiliated at Lord’s.

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Root added: “You need to have that reaction within you to play at this level for such a long time.

e’ve seen it with Cooky and you’ve seen it with the two senior bowlers this week.

“That’s why they are record breakers for this country.

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“When they bowl like they did in this match, especially in the first innings, it is very difficult for any side to play well against them.”

Root also insisted under-fire head coach Trevor Bayliss’ wisdom and calmness helped after the First Test debacle.

He said: “It was very tough last week, we had to show a lot of character here.

“We asked a lot from the players and they delivered.”

Ben Stokes, who has torn his left hamstring, will miss the one-day clash with Scotland on June 10 and some of the five-match series against Australia.