Joe Root paid tribute to late Graham Thorpe on the occasion of his 39th Test century on Day 4 of the fifth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025. He pulled out a headband and wore it after crossing the century mark with it, having worn it when he pointed towards the sky. Root reached his ton with a flick of a length ball to deep-backward square leg for a couple during the 69th over of England's second innings, with the hosts trying to chase 374 for the victory. The erstwhile English great was Root's mentor and batting coach in the developing stage of his career. The two had a cordial relationship while spending time together. Interestingly, Thorpe was a strong advocate for Root's place in the national team. Earlier in the series, Root overtook Ricky Ponting to go to second on the leaderboard of all-time run-scorers in the history of Test cricket. This 39th century by him also overtook Kumar Sangakkara's record of 38 to achieve another landmark. Read also: Watch: Umpire Raza’s Funny Reply to Duckett’s Sledge Goes Viral Root and Brook Power England to Strong Position Day 4 ended with the umpires calling for stumps, and what a day it was. Four days of to-and-fro cricket have built up for a nail-biting last day. England began the day nicely with Ben Duckett continuing with his aggressive style of play. He scored his half-century but was caught in the slips shortly afterwards. On 106/3, after Pope was bowled by Siraj with a nice nip-backer, England seemed a little vulnerable. And then came the match-turning partnership of Joe Root and Harry Brook. The duo batted well, putting the entire pressure on India. Brook got a lifeline when Siraj dropped him at fine leg, and he capitalized on it, hitting a 111 in just 98 balls at a quick rate. India's bowlers started to tire and the ball had softened, making it more difficult. Root's calm hand and Brook's aggressive batting have taken England forward towards Day 5.