Joe Root, England’s premier batsman, has never scored a Test century in Australia, a glaring omission in his storied career that is under fresh scrutiny as the 2025 Ashes series looms. This anomaly persists despite his status as one of cricket’s modern greats, with experts debating whether conquering this final frontier is essential to cementing his legacy.
Root has played 14 Tests in Australia, amassing 892 runs with nine half-centuries but failing to convert any into a hundred. His average of 35.68 down under is the lowest of any country he has batted in more than twice, highlighting a consistent struggle in these conditions. While this record includes respectable contributions, the absence of a century stands out given his prolific scoring elsewhere, including 30 Test hundreds overall.
A key factor in Root’s Australian woes is his reliance on scoring behind square on the off side, which accounts for about 20% of his controlled runs. On England’s slower pitches, this shot is effective, but on Australia’s quicker, bouncier surfaces, it becomes high-risk. Former England captain Michael Vaughan notes that the late glide through third man, a staple of Root’s game, often results in edges due to the extra bounce, leading to dismissals caught by the wicketkeeper or in the slips.
Analysis of Root’s dismissals reveals that his issues stem almost exclusively from pace bowling, particularly on full or good-length deliveries that seam away. Contrary to popular belief, he is not especially vulnerable to lbw; in the last Ashes series in Australia, only 10% of deliveries bowled to him would have hit the stumps. Instead, most dismissals came from nicks to the cordon, with eight of ten in the 2021-22 series resulting from attempts to steer the ball to third man.
Specific bowlers have compounded Root’s troubles, notably Pat Cummins and Scott Boland. Boland, in particular, dismissed Root four times in the 2021-22 series, conceding just 39 runs from 74 deliveries and reducing Root’s average against him to a meager 9.8. However, when Boland toured England in 2023, Root scored 63 runs without dismissal, suggesting that conditions play a significant role in this matchup and raising hopes that Root may have adapted.
Root’s previous tours to Australia coincided with his tenure as England captain, which may have contributed to mental and physical fatigue. He scored eight of his nine Australian fifties as skipper, but six of those came after more than 100 overs in the field, potentially indicating exhaustion. Now freed from leadership duties, Root approaches the 2025 Ashes with a renewed focus, emphasizing his aggressive batting philosophy under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, which has yielded an average of 63.44 in 2025.
Looking ahead, Root expresses confidence that his experience and evolved game will help him break the century drought. He has stated that he is in a ‘different place’ mentally and physically, drawing on recent successes to navigate Australian conditions. If he succeeds, it could silence critics who question his standing among all-time greats like Steve Smith and Virat Kohli, while a failure might perpetuate debates about his completeness as a batsman.
The upcoming Ashes series thus represents a pivotal moment for Root, not just for team success but for his personal legacy. With the first Test in Perth on November 21, all eyes will be on whether he can finally erase this blemish and secure his place in cricket history with a long-awaited ton on Australian soil.
