Former Australia captain Matthew Hayden believes that England batting maestro Joe Root will break his century drought in the upcoming Ashes, which will take place later this year in November.
The upcoming Ashes will be an important red-ball series for both Australia and England. For England, this will be their chance to win the first away Ashes series since 2011 and their first overall since 2015. It would be an ultimate Test for England, who recently faced India in the five-Test match series of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, which ended in a 2-2 draw. The upcoming Australia tour will also be important for Joe Root, who is in the form of his life, as he is yet to score a Test century in Australia.
Speaking on the 'All Over Bar the Cricket' podcast on YouTube, Hayden gave himself a massive dare if Root failed to score a century in Australia during the series, saying, "I will walk nude around the MCG if he doesn't make a hundred this summer."
The five-match red-ball series between Australia and England will start from November 21, and the first clash will take place in Perth.
Root is currently the second-highest run-getter is Tests after Sachin Tendulkar, the stylish batter scored 13543 runs in his 158 Test appearances. His last Test outing came against India in the five-Test match series, where he amassed 537 runs in five matches and nine innings at an average of 67.14, including three centuries and a fifty, ending as the second-highest run-getter and England's best batter.
Root has scored 892 runs at a decent average of 35.68 in Australia, but the batter failed to smash a ton. He has nine fifties with the best score of 89.