‘I’d love to’: Root wants one last Ashes series Down Under before he retires

Joe Root is still planning to return for another Ashes tour of Australia, with the veteran batter declaring he’d “love to” come back for one last rodeo Down Under after knocking out a superb 160 in the fifth Test in Sydney.

The Englishman stands as the second-highest Test runscorer (behind the illustrious Sachin Tendulkar), and has been drawing more and more questions about his future in recent months. He’s already 35 years old, and would be 39 the next time his side would travel to Australia to face the old enemy in the ancient cricketing contest, the Ashes.

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That ticking clock on his age led many to suggest this would be the last time we’d see Root play in Australia, with those only compounded as he saluted to all Sydney corners as he walked away from his 160 knock on Monday.

Not so, though, says the veteran: “I think you might be looking into it a little bit too much,” he said.

“I just felt like we’ve had some amazing support throughout this series, and we’ve not been able to achieve what we set out to as a group. But at no point has that [support] ever wavered, and that’s never wavered whenever I’ve come out here on tour; it’s been exceptional,” the 162-Test star and once England captain explained. “It’s a way of saying thank you, really.”

Not to beat around the bush, Aussie media then laid it to him directly: Will we be seeing you again in four years when England returns? No guarantee, Root said, but, “Who knows? We’ll see. I’d love to… We’ll see how things unfold in time.”

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Should this be Root’s last ever touring Ashes, it would be a solid outing individually — though a tough series loss, maybe 4–1 if Australia get over them in Sydney’s battle, may spoil things a little — for the veteran. He raked in 400 runs through 10 innings, the series’ second highest, and added three catches to his already history-high haul.

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Even just in a simpler sense, too, Root doesn’t plan to retire before the 2027 Cricket World Cup, with the Englishman wanting to stay in the international side long enough to potentially use that as a goodbye campaign.

He may even play on to 40, like Tendulkar across his 200 Test career, though only time will tell.