Root’s twin hundreds in the Lord’s Test against Sri Lanka meant he set a new England record of 34 centuries in a Test career.
Among the Fab Four, Root has the most hundreds in Test cricket leading Kane Williamson (32), Steve Smith (32) and Virat Kohli (29).
Root is at the joint sixth-place in the all-time list of Test century-makers alongside Younis Khan, Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara and Mahela Jayawardene.
Now a video is going viral in which former cricketers Adam Gilchrist and Michael Vaughan are debating to choose their batsman of choice in Australia amongst Virat Kohli and Joe Root.
During a podcast on Club Prairie Fire, both Gilchrist and Vaughan choose Virat over Root in T20 cricket. In ODI cricket, Vaughan again chooses Virat over Root and Gilchrist replies “absolutely”.
When it comes to Test cricket, Vaughan goes for Root to which Gilchrist replies “in the last short while definitely”.
Gilchrist continues, “Over a long period of time Joe Root’s stats are…, well he’s the best England ever had.”
But when Gilchrist was asked by the host to choose between Virat and Root versus Australia, the former Australian keeper asked “where are we playing”.
In Australia, Gilchrist remarked that Root has not scored a hundred, to which Vaughan replies, “but he will”.
Gilchrist continues, “Virat scored one of the best tons I’ve seen at the Perth stadium in the first Test match ever played there, that was probably different gravy. I’d probably say Virat.”
Vaughan responds, “I wouldn’t argue with that in Australia. I would say Virat in Australia against the Aussies, anywhere else I’m going Joe Root.”
Both then go on to talk about Root’s record in India that has seen the former England captain score 1272 runs from 15 Test matches at an average of 45.42 with three hundreds.
Known for his aggressive and technically sound batting, Kohli excels in all formats of the game. His strengths include cover drives, flicks, and the ability to chase down targets with precision. Kohli’s adaptability and consistency make him one of the most reliable batsmen in the world.
Root is known for his classical batting technique and consistency, especially in Test cricket. He is particularly strong against pace and spin, with an elegant playing style that includes effective use of the back foot and a wide range of shots. Root is also known for his ability to grind out runs in challenging conditions.
While both players are exceptional, Kohli is often regarded as more dominant in limited-overs cricket, whereas Root’s strengths lie in the longer format.