Ricky Ponting said that England’s Joe Root is likely to break the world record of Sachin Tendulkar. Root, who recently surpassed the 12,000-run mark, is the seventh-highest run-scorer in Test cricket.
Root needs 1,351 runs to go past Ponting’s tally of 13,378. He is also less than 4,000 runs away from Tendulkar’s record of 15,921. With England set to take on Sri Lanka in the upcoming Test series, Root has a chance to cut the gap.
“He could potentially break Sachin Tendulkar’s world record,” Ponting said on the latest episode of the ICC Review.
“He is 33 years of age and a lot will depend on how many Test matches England play. If England play 10 to 14 Tests and he scores 800 to 1000 runs a year, he can get there in three or four years. If his hunger is alive, he has all the chance to go past the world record,” he added.
Root recently hit his 32nd Test century against the West Indies in Nottingham.
“He has improved a lot in the last couple of years. Joe Root reached his prime in early 30s and his conversion rate has been magnificent. Four or five years ago, he was dealing in half-centuries and struggling to touch the three-figure mark. The situation is different at the moment. He is converting his fifties into hundreds. That’s a big turnaround for him.”
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