Joe Root Gets 'Virat Kohli Ultimatum' Amid Hunt For Sachin Tendulkar's World Record

The highly-anticipated 2025 Ashes series will kick off on November 21 in Perth. This mouth-watering contest between Australia and England is widely known for bringing the best of Test cricket to fans. The five-match series carries a 143-year-old legacy. Over the years, both nations have played fierce cricket against each other, making the rivalry more intense. Ahead of the upcoming edition, former England spinner Monty Panesar has stated that Joe Root's performance in the Ashes will determine his future in cricket.

In the five-match series against India, which ended in a 2-2 draw, Joe Root broke several records and became the second-highest run-scorer in Test cricket. However, Panesar stated that Root needs to maintain his performance in Australia, or his Test career will start declining.

He even mentioned star India batter Virat Kohli, who failed to leave a mark in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia in 2024-25, which eventually became his last appearance in Test cricket.

"It really depends on how next year goes for him, how the Ashes go. We saw this with Virat Kohli, right? He went to Australia and he just didn't know what to do with that ball outside the 4th, 5th stump. I think that kind of led to his decision or a collective decision for him to retire. And yeah, if Joe Root doesn't have a good Ashes series and it goes really bad for him," Panesar told India Today.

"Suddenly all it takes is one series and you look, it's a different ball game altogether. England could lose their coach, their captain, if it's a very bad series; a few jobs could be on the line. Suddenly people begin questioning, 'is he past his best?' So it's very important when you go to Australia, it doesn't matter how good you are, you've got to perform in Australia," he added.

Root, who made his Test debut in Australia in 2013, has played 14 matches in the country, scoring 892 runs at an average of 35.68.

Topics mentioned in this article

Australia Cricket Team England Cricket Team Monty Panesar Virat Kohli Joe Root Cricket