Graeme Swann rates Joe Root above Virat Kohli, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson and says England captain can surpass Alastair Cook
Graeme Swann rates Joe Root above Virat Kohli, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson and says the Test captain can surpass Sir Alastair Cook to become England’s record run-scorer.
Root scored 426 runs during England’s series win in Sri Lanka – including a brilliant double century in the first Test – to go above Geoffrey Boycott, Kevin Pietersen and David Gower in England’s list of leading run-scorers.
The 30-year-old is currently England’s fourth-leading run-scorer in Test cricket, behind Alec Stewart, Graham Gooch and Cook, who remains more than 4,000 runs ahead of his former teammate.
But despite the significant gap, Root has been backed to surpass Cook by former England spinner and Betfair ambassador Swann, who was speaking to Metro.co.uk from Abu Dhabi.
‘That seems very possible. I’m not joking when I say I think he [Joe Root] is the best we’ve produced,’ Swann said.
‘I adore Cooky, a lovely player, but in terms of natural talent and pure batsmanship, Root is phenomenal.
‘I honestly don’t think we’ve seen the best from him. Those Test matches in Sri Lanka, that’s what we should be seeing from him more often.
‘I think he’s been dragged down by the captaincy. If he would have been left to bat he would have scored more runs but I think he’s matured into it and found the balance now.
‘I think he could average 60 or 70 in this series [against India] and really give England a fighting chance. For me, the form of Joe Root is the one thing that really excites me for the India series now.
‘When you’ve got a batsman scoring that heavily and looking that sound… he could have a massive series and I’m excited about that.’
England’s Root, India’s Kohli, Australia’s Smith and New Zealand’s Williamson have been regarded as the ‘Big Four’ in Test cricket for almost half a decade, although Root’s place among his peers was seen to be under threat as he went over a year without scoring a red-ball century.
Root enjoyed a brilliant return to form in Sri Lanka, however, and Swann believes he can score a ‘ridiculous’ volume of runs this year as England play nine Tests against India and compete for the Ashes.
Swann, who played in Root’s England debut against India in 2013, even rates his ex-teammate above current greats Kohli, Smith and Williamson, although he admits he is somewhat ‘biased’.
‘I’ve been waiting for Joe to have his turn,’ Swann said. ‘We’ve seen the ‘big four’ batsman in world cricket go big, now Root’s due his turn.
‘In my opinion, because I’m complete biased, he’s the best of the lot. It’s his year and I want him to score a ridiculous amount of runs. If he does that, if gives England a chance.’
England’s four-match Test series against India starts on Friday in Chennai.
For more from Betfair Ambassador Graeme Swann, head to his blog on Betting.Betfair.
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