Joe Root Poised to Break Sachin Tendulkar's Test Run Record, Says Ricky Ponting

Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting believes England's Joe Root has the potential to surpass Sachin Tendulkar's record of Test runs, provided he maintains his current form and hunger for the next four years.

Root recently crossed the 12,000-run mark during the Edgbaston Test against the West Indies, becoming the seventh batter to achieve this milestone in Test cricket. He has accumulated 12,027 runs in 143 Tests, with an average of 50.11, including 32 centuries and 63 fifties.

Ponting believes that Root's age and current form make him a strong contender to break Tendulkar's record. "He (Root) could potentially do that. He is 33 years of age…(more than) 3000 runs behind," Ponting told The ICC Review.

"It depends how many Test matches they play, but if they're playing 10 to 14 Test matches a year and if you're scoring 800 to 1,000 runs a year, then that sort of says he's only three or four years off getting there. So that'll take him to 37 (years of age)," said the legendary Australian.

Ponting emphasized that Root's hunger for runs and his ability to convert half-centuries into big scores will be crucial in his pursuit of the record. "If his hunger's still there, then there's every chance that he could do it. He is someone that in the last couple of years has got better and better," Ponting said.

"There's always talk around batters reaching their prime in their early 30s and he's certainly done that. It's been his conversion rates being the big thing," he said.

Ponting noted that Root has overcome his previous struggles to convert half-centuries into big scores. "Four or five years ago, he was making a lot of 50s and struggling to go on and make hundreds and he's gone the other way recently," Ponting said.

"Almost every time he gets to 50 now, he goes on and makes a big hundred. So that's been the real turnaround for him," he added.

If Root continues to perform at his current level, he could potentially surpass Tendulkar's record of 15,921 Test runs. However, it will require him to maintain his hunger for runs and continue to convert his half-centuries into big scores.

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