[WATCH] Will Joe Root choose not to chase Sachin Tendulkar's most Test runs? Former India star predicts

Since Joe Root surpassed Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, and Rahul Dravid in the ladder of the most Test runs of all-time to be in the back seat of Sachin Tendulkar, the talk of the town is only on the prediction of when and how he could break the record. But will they decide to pull him off the race and decide not to chase the record?

The discussion happened on the Star Sports studio as they reflected on the recent incident of Wiaan Mulder denying the chance to break Brian Lara’s 400-run record against Zimbabwe at the Queens Park Oval in Bulawayo. Will Joe take the same route and make the decision? The former Indian wicket-keeper, Parthiv Patel, certainly doesn’t think so.

See Also: [WATCH] Joe Root reflects on Sachin Tendulkar's greatness during ENG vs IND 4th Test in Manchester

‘Not, he should not do it at all!! I mean, you are scoring runs, and the record belongs to you. I wasn’t convinced by what Mulder did. When Matthew Hayden broke the record for the first time, it was also against Zimbabwe in Perth. He didn’t deny that. So when you are in a situation like that, then why not? And Joe Root is quite near.’ Parthiv Patel expressed on Star Sports.

Watch: Parthiv Patel reflects on whether Joe Root will choose not to chase Sachin Tendulkar’s Test record

Patel made a valid point that Root stands at a position of being possibly the only person to break the record. With the amount of Tests played around the globe and the loss of attention to the oldest format of the game, it’s unlikely for anyone to get to the mark.

‘A few years ago, people used to say that the record is there; you know, records are made to be broken. But realistically, if there is anyone who can break the record, then it’s Joe Root. If he can’t break it, then I don’t think anyone can. You know, you don’t play that amount of Test matches. So, if someone can break the record of 15921 runs, then it’s not Root.’ Patel addressed.

Currently, Root has 13409 runs in 286 innings at an average of 51.17 and a strike rate of 57.40, having scored 38 centuries and 66 half-centuries at the best score of 262. He is around 2500 runs behind Tendulkar’s 15921 runs in 329 innings.