[Exclusive] There’s a genuine chance that Joe Root breaks Sachin Tendulkar’s Test record: Monty Panesar

Joe Root has represented England in 146 Tests and scored 12402 runs at an average of 50.62. He is currently 3519 runs behind the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, who holds the record for most runs by a batter in Test history with 15921 in a record 200 games. With his two back-to-back tons in the three-match series against Sri Lanka recently, Root has come even closer to the all-time record and has a brilliant opportunity to break it.

Former England spinner Monty Panesar believes that Root can break Tendulkar’s records if he shows the same consistency and the kind of form he is in right now. The 42-year-old stated that every cricket fan in England is optimistic and he believes that if Root goes on to play for four more years, he can eventually become the batter with the most runs in Test cricket. Panesar also added that he never thought of discussing Root’s name in the same bracket as Tendulkar when it comes to such records.

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“I think there’s a possibility. Everyone in England is calculating that. Whenever Joe Root scores, everyone starts calculating the difference. The gap is probably 3500 runs and I think he can definitely play for four more years. So, to score 4000 runs in four years is possible. Also, I think Sachin paaji played till 40. There’s a genuine chance for Joe Root to break the record. It’s debatable whether it's good for the game but everyone in England wants Root’s name on the top of the list and surely, Indians want Sachin to be number one,” Panesar told exclusively to CricTracker. 

“Never thought that we would talk about Root breaking Sachin’s record. Now, it also depends on him - how much he desires it or is hungry for it. It will also depend on his form,” he added.

Root will next feature in England’s three-match Test series against Pakistan. The cricketer will be hoping to keep up with the form, which helped him win the Player of the Series trophy against Sri Lanka. However, his record in Pakistan isn’t very good, having scored just 125 runs in three games at an average of 25. 

There’s a possibility of Virat Kohli breaking Sachin’s 100 tons record: Panesar

Panesar believes that star India batter Virat Kohli can break the 100-centuries record of Sachin. He is currently 20 shy but Panesar believes that if he is motivated and plays like the way he did in 2016, it won’t be an impossible task.

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“There’s a possibility of that as well. He was in his best form in 2016. He needs to come back to that zone. Sometimes it’s also about the motivation. He might think why am I working so hard at this point. We can say only Sachin paaji was so motivated all the time. He still motivates young cricketers,” Panesar said.