Joe Root has reflected on the scale of Sachin Tendulkar’s achievements while continuing his own climb up the all-time Test run charts. The England batter, currently second on the all-time list with 13,943 runs, trails only the Indian great, whose tally of 15,921 remains the benchmark in red-ball cricket.
As Root edges closer to the highest echelon of the game’s batting history, comparisons with some of cricket’s most celebrated names have become increasingly common. His consistency across formats and longevity at the top level have already placed him alongside figures such as Brian Lara, Sunil Gavaskar and Jacques Kallis in conversations surrounding the modern era’s finest batters.
Now, despite the growing debate over where his legacy could eventually stand, Root made it clear that merely being mentioned alongside Tendulkar is something he views as an achievement in itself.
“It’s remarkable what Sachin Tendulkar achieved in the game. You have to believe me when I say that to even be in the conversation with him is enough for me. The guy made his Test debut before I was born and played in my Test debut! His longevity in itself is remarkable and then you look at the runs he got in Test cricket… but not only that, he’s got 50 ODI hundreds, too. All the while he was the most famous man in India. Serious, serious player,” he said in an interview with The Athletic.
Root’s own Test journey has gone through dramatic shifts. His early years established him as one of England’s most technically gifted batters, before a difficult stretch between 2018 and 2021 saw his century-making consistency disappear. During that period, he managed only four hundreds in 60 innings.
The years following the pandemic, however, brought a transformation in his output. Root returned to prolific form and rebuilt his reputation as one of the game’s premier run-scorers, piling up centuries at a remarkable rate.
Root on Ashes frustration
The England veteran also addressed the team’s recent Ashes disappointment after a heavy 4-1 defeat to Australia, admitting the series result remained a source of frustration within the camp.
“Any series you don’t win, you’re going to be disappointed and you’re going to try and find areas where you could have been better. The one thing that stands out and frustrates me the most is that, you know, the coaches have taken and worn a lot of the negativity around what happened this winter and, as players, we should be the ones taking the responsibility for how we performed. We’re the ones out there, we’re the ones making the decisions and playing the game and we’re the ones who underperformed. That’s on us. They shouldn’t be the ones shouldering that,” he added.
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