'Knew he was going to...': Sachin Tendulkar on Joe Root
What's the story
Sachin Tendulkar, the legendary Indian cricketer, has endorsed Joe Root as one of the best batters of his generation. Tendulkar said he recognized the England star's potential during his very first Test appearance in 2012. Notably, Root is now closing in on Tendulkar's long-standing record for the most runs in Test cricket. During an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on Reddit, Tendulkar was asked about Root's pursuit of his record, and he praised him highly.
Endorsement
Tendulkar's endorsement of Root
"I've always rated him very highly, and it was evident to me in his first Test match that he was going to make it big," Tendulkar said.
The batting maestro's endorsement comes as a huge compliment as Root is just 1,643 away from surpassing Tendulkar's record of 15,921 Test runs.
Since making his debut in 2012, Root has racked up 14,278 runs at 50.45, including 41 tons.
Debut
Root's special Test debut
Interestingly, Tendulkar was part of the Indian team that hosted England when Root made his Test debut in Nagpur in December 2012.
While the match was drawn, Root showed incredible technique against spin bowling in his 73 off 229 balls. This was after England collapsed to 139/5 in the first innings.
Meanwhile, Tendulkar scored 2 (13) in India's only innings in the match.
Career
A look at Root's Test career
Earlier this year, Root broke another Test record set by Tendulkar.
He now has the most half-centuries in the format (69), having overtaken Tendulkar's tally (68).
Root is currently one of England's two players with 9,000-plus Test runs, the other being Alastair Cook (12,472).
Only Tendulkar (51) and Jacques Kallis (45) are ahead of Root in terms of Test centuries. Root is tied with Ricky Ponting (41).