England's batting maestro Joe Root has set his sights on one of cricket's most sacred milestones: surpassing the legendary Sachin Tendulkar's all-time record for runs in Test cricket. The pursuit, which began quietly over a decade ago, is now entering its most critical phase.
The Long Road from Nagpur to the Record Hunt
The paths of Joe Root and Sachin Tendulkar crossed only once on the cricket field. It was during Root's Test debut in Nagpur in December 2012. A 39-year-old Tendulkar was in the final chapter of his career, while Root, just days from turning 22, announced his arrival with scores of 73 and 20 not out against a formidable Indian spin attack. Few could have predicted that the young Englishman was setting off on a trail that would one day lead him to the footsteps of the Indian icon.
Fast forward to the present, and Root has started the year 2026 with a century in the Ashes series in Australia. This knock has further solidified his position as the leading active run-scorer. His current Test tally stands at a monumental 13,943 runs from 163 Tests. The mountain left to climb is 1,978 runs to overtake Tendulkar's seemingly insurmountable final tally of 15,921 runs.
Experts Back Root's Historic Quest
The cricket world is now seriously considering the possibility. Following Root's century at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), former England captain Michael Vaughan stated unequivocally on Cricbuzz that Root is destined to break the record. "There is no doubt Root will break Sachin’s record. The real question is whether he will be back for the next Ashes in Australia, which is four years away," Vaughan remarked.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has echoed this sentiment, highlighting Root's age and schedule. "Look at his age (35). He’s got about 40 Tests left... He’s still young. He has four years of cricket ahead of him. And what will separate him and Tendulkar will be around 3,000 runs. When you’re hot, you’re hot, and he has age on his side," Shastri said during commentary last year.
England's packed Test calendar supports this optimism. The team's schedule is mapped out until the end of the 2027 home summer, featuring a possible 20 Tests over the next 18 months, including series against New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Bangladesh, and a marquee 150th-anniversary Test at the MCG.
From Fab Four Laggard to Lone Front-Runner
Root's journey to this point is a story of remarkable resurgence. Once considered a notch below his 'Fab Four' peers—Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, and Kane Williamson—in terms of converting fifties to hundreds, Root has flipped the narrative completely. In January 2021, he lagged significantly in centuries. However, over the past four years, his conversion rate has skyrocketed.
From 2021 to 2025, Root has hammered 24 centuries and only 17 fifties in 67 Tests. In stark contrast, over a similar period, Williamson scored 10 hundreds, Smith 11, and Kohli managed only 3 before retiring from Tests in May 2025. Root now stands alone as the only realistic contender from his generation to challenge Tendulkar's record.
Root credits his transformation to meticulous analysis during the Covid-19 pandemic and conversations with former skipper Nasser Hussain. "In this second phase, it’s been more about managing risk and eliminating as many modes of dismissal as possible while still producing the highest output," Root explained.
The Numbers Game: Root vs Tendulkar
The statistical comparison is fascinating. At 34, just before the Sydney Test, Root had 13,777 runs at an average of 50.83 from 162 Tests. At the same age, Tendulkar had 11,782 runs at a higher average of 55.31, but from fewer matches (147 Tests).
The milestone pace differs too. Root reached his 41st Test century in his 297th innings, the slowest among batters to reach that mark. Tendulkar, in comparison, had scored his 51st hundred by his 289th innings.
The critical period for Root will mirror Tendulkar's prolific run after 35. The Indian legend added 4,139 runs in 91 innings after turning 35, including 12 centuries. For Root to match Tendulkar's final tally within a similar number of innings (329), he needs to score 1,978 runs from his next 31 innings—a demanding but not impossible task, especially given his current form and fitness.
With a relatively lighter white-ball international load (218 matches) compared to Tendulkar's 463 ODIs, and age on his side, Joe Root's quiet pursuit from Nagpur has blossomed into cricket's most compelling historical chase. The cricketing world now watches to see if the Yorkshireman can cruise past the once-unfathomable mark set by the Master Blaster.
