Joe Root can overtake Sachin Tendulkar eventually: Vaughan

On Sunday (July 21), Joe Root notched up the 32nd hundred of his Test career in the second Test against West Indies at Trent Bridge. It wasn’t just another ton, as it helped Root level Steve Waugh, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson in terms of most Test hundreds. 

It didn’t stop there either, as en route to his century, Root also went past Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s tally of most Test runs, with just 13 runs separating him and Brian Lara, who is the seventh-highest run scorer in Test history. 

With Root only 33, there are realistic expectations that the Yorkshireman could go past Sachin Tendulkar’s tally of 15921 runs. That leaves Root only 3981 runs behind an all-time record in the longest format. Former England skipper Michael Vaughan feels that Root can overtake Sachin’s record eventually. 

"Joe Root will become England’s leading run-scorer in the next few months and is so special that he really could overtake Sachin Tendulkar eventually. With the bat generally they did not look reckless like they have in the past. They are scoring quickly, but it doesn’t look like their egos are taking over. They are just playing with good sense,” Vaughan wrote in his column for The Telegraph.

"As the rock, Root is obviously key to that, and I love that he kept the reverse-scoop in the locker until he was past 100 and England’s lead was massive," Vaughan added.

Root wasn’t the only Yorkshireman who impressed Vaughan, with Harry Brook continuing his impressive start to his Test career. The 25-year-old notched up his fifth Test century (109), amassing 1376 runs in just 14 Tests, with a real ability to stand out from the rest. Vaughan likened Brook to yesteryear star Kevin Pietersen. 

“Then there’s Harry Brook, who is going to provide spectators so many “I was there” moments in the next few years. He will play innings and shots that just make you go “wow”. I have seen players with time, but I’m not sure I’ve seen anyone with that much time to play aggressive shots looking very easy. Stillness, trigger, hands high, cocked wrist,” he added. 

“There is a bit of Kevin Pietersen there, that ability to play jaw-dropping innings. Darren Lehmann has coached some serious players and he tweeted on Sunday that he is in the top five players he has thrown balls to, alongside Steve Smith, Rohit Sharma, AB de Villiers and Kumar Sangakkara. That is special company to keep.”

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