Former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson expressed his admiration for Joe Root, praising the England batter’s record-breaking feats in the longest format of the game. Williamson noted that Root’s consistent performances in Test cricket have opened the door to breaking some of the game’s most significant records.
Speaking to reporters in Greater Noida ahead of New Zealand’s one-off Test against Afghanistan, starting September 9, Williamson downplayed the “Fab Four” discussions. Williamson said he enjoys watching Root, Virat Kohli, and Steve Smith bat in Test cricket. For years, Williamson, Kohli, Root, and Smith have dominated red-ball cricket, with Root recently pulling ahead due to his beyond-believable run in the last four years.
Joe Root recently surpassed Alastair Cook’s record for most Test centuries by an England player, scoring hundreds in both innings of a Test against Sri Lanka at Lord’s earlier in September. Root, who hit 17 centuries in his first nine years, has matched that tally in the last four years, demonstrating remarkable consistency.
“Not really, no,” Williamson said when asked if the chatter about the Fab Four serves as a motivation to push harder.
“You mentioned Joe Root. He has been something else for a long period of time. Obviously, there is a lot of attention on what he might be able to achieve in a number of years and it’s just incredible that that conversion can even be had. He has been phenomenal.
“I have been a big fan of his. Not just him, but the other guys as well, amazing how they have sort of moved the game forward in a big way,” he added.
With 34 hundreds to his name, Kane Williamson has also been consistently chipping in with some memorable performances. In the last four years, Williamson has hit nine hundreds.
