‘Lot more to be done’: Joe Root eyes more success after record-breaking 34th Test Century

England’s talismanic batter Joe Root is hungry for more success after scoring a record-breaking 34th Test hundred. Root scored a majestic knock of 103 runs off 121 balls in the second innings of the second Test match against Sri Lanka at Lord’s on Saturday.

With it, Root leapfrogged former captain Alastair Cook’s record of most Test centuries for England. Earlier in the second Test match, Root scored a brilliant knock of 143 runs off 206 balls as he batted at the top of his game.

Root has been England’s best batter in the last few years and he will look to continue the good show for the team. The 33-year-old from Yorkshire has amassed 12377 runs in 145 Test matches at an average of 50.93.

“It’s obviously nice to get plaudits like that off two of England’s greatest players,” Root told reporters after stumps. “But I feel like there’s a lot more work to be done and a lot more to contribute, still. When that peters out, I guess I’ll start thinking about that, then.

“Until that sort of enthusiasm has left me, who knows what it means? But it’s a very fickle game and things can change very quickly. You want to stay hungry. I think the last little while, I feel like I’ve had a good balance of wanting to get better and evolve, but not trying too much, too quickly. And I guess that’s the art of it.”

Root has flowered under the tutelage of head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes, scoring his runs at an average of 60 in 28 Test matches.

“This environment and the way we look at the game now is so fun to be around, it’s an environment where you see guys thrive and even as a senior player it gives you so much energy,” Root said speaking of dressing room’s atmosphere.

England is in a commanding position in the second Test match as they need another eight wickets whereas Sri Lanka needs to climb a mountain of 483 runs to level the series.