Whether he gets past Sachin or not, Root will go down as England's greatest in Tests: Ian Bell

Joe Root surpasses Kumar Sangakkara in Test runs, aiming to break Sachin Tendulkar's record, hailed as England's greatest batter.

Joe Root will go down as England's greatest batter in Tests even if he is not able to break Sachin Tendulkar’s gargantuan record of 15,921 runs, reckons his former teammate Ian Bell.

Root went past Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara recently to move to the sixth spot in the list of highest run-getters in the longest format.

“He's played incredibly well in the last 12 months. I don't think he's overthinking too much what's ahead. He's just sort of living in the moment as we are,” Bell told PTI in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of Legends League Cricket.

“To think that he can even get close to someone like Sachin, a real great of the game, someone that we've all admired growing up, as a hero to not just people and fans in India, but around the world.

“To think that Joe could get close is an amazing achievement on his behalf. He'll go down as England's greatest batsman. There's no doubt whether he does get to Sachin or not,” said the 42-year-old who played as many as 118 Tests for England.

With 12,402 runs, the 33-year-old Root is 3,519 runs away from breaking Tendulkar’s record.

Bell feels England’s much talked-about Bazball approach has unlocked talent of the current players.