Sheffield’s own Billy Root delighted cricket badgers from across the world this week after joining them at the Barmy Army Fans World Cup in Sri Lanka.

First-class cricketer, Root, who is the brother of former England Test captain, Joe, represented the Barmy Army’s own team at the tournament, which took place on 20 and 21 November.

They finished as runners-up, losing by 23 runs to Pakistan in the final.

Barmy Army media manager, Chuck Adolphy, said the players revelled in competing alongside and against a cricketer of Root’s calibre.

He said: “Billy really got stuck into the tournament, which was great to see. It was like having a small dust of stardom and you very much felt that when he got out on the pitch.”

The cricketer has hit seven first-class centuries representing Nottinghamshire and Glamorgan after following his brother, Joe, through the ranks at Rotherham Town and Sheffield Collegiate.

“There were a few jokes thrown around seeing a Root dominate on Galle Fort,” said Mr Adolphy.

The jokes referenced Joe’s form on England’s last tour of Sri Lanka in 2021 when he hit over 400 runs across two matches at Galle International Stadium, including a double-century. All the matches played this week were held at the ground.

The Barmy Army have become well-known at cricket grounds across the world after nearly 30 years of loud and unconditional support for England.

They currently have over 6000 paying members along with their own travel agency known as Barmy Travel. The company will be accommodating about 200 people to the Caribbean next month, with England set to tour the West Indies.

Seven teams from six nations took part in the second edition of the Barmy Army Fans World Cup this week. Sri Lanka cricket legend Mahela Jayawardene was on hand to present the winner’s trophy at the end of it.

Mr Adolphy said: “Unfortunately cricket in Sri Lanka has recently been in strife, so a lot of it has been about putting cricket back on the map there.”

The country were recently suspended as members of the International Cricket Council and finished ninth at the Cricket World Cup in India.

The Barmy Army are hoping Root’s starring role at the recent tournament, will allow the Fans World Cup to grow in the future.

 “The main takeaway this week is there’s something there that really brings people together,” said Mr Adolphy.

“We’ve set a high bar this week but we’ll keep pushing to make it a bigger and better event.”