Star England batter Joe Root slammed his 38th Test hundred on Friday, July 25 on Day 3 of the Manchester Test against India. The right-handed batter scored 150 off 248 balls, hitting 14 balls in his knock as England continued to dominate the contest at Old Trafford. The 34-year-old was looking good for a double hundred, but an excellent delivery from Ravindra Jadeja ended his stay at the crease.With his 38th Test ton, Root is now joint-fourth on the list of batters with most hundreds in Test cricket, level with Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara. Only Sachin Tendulkar (51), Jacques Kallis (45) and Ricky Ponting (41) are above the former England captain on the illustrious list.During the course of his knock in Manchester on Friday, Root also surpassed Ponting (13,378) to move to second place on the list of batters with most Test runs. He now has 13,409 runs, with only Tendulkar (15,921) ahead of him. On that note, we look at five expert predictions on Root's chances of surpassing Tendulkar's record run tally in Test matches.#1 Michael VaughanFormer England captain Michael Vaughan is confident that Root will go on to break Tendulkar's world record for most Test runs. In fact, he went a step ahead and made a bold prediction on the match in which Root will break the record and also picked the bowler against whom he will score the record-breaking run."I think he will catch up with Sachin. He is 2500 runs away. As long as he doesn't get a bad injury. If he continues to go at the rate that he's been at in the last two or three years, I think it'll be the 4th Test against Australia in 2027, Pat Cummins will just bowl to him on his hips and he'll go thank you very much, and he'll go past Sachin. I think he's got the game, he's got the enthusiasm. He's 34. Sachin played till he was 40," Vaughan told Cricbuzz.In the ongoing Test series against India, Root has scored 403 runs in seven innings at an average of 67.17, with two hundreds and one half-century.#2 Ravi ShastriFormer India head coach Ravi Shastri reckons that Root has a realistic chance of surpassing Tendulkar's Test tally and moving to the top of the illustrious list. According to Shastri, the England star will get there if he plays for another 3.5 to four years. Speaking on Sky Sports, the former India all-rounder said:"The more England win, the more it will keep Root in that frame of mind to play. He needs another 3.5 to 4 years. If he is there that length of time, that record, which no one thought was achievable, is gettable. If he does get it, no one will pass that.""It's very much on the cards. The good thing is he has got a good captain in Stokes, who likes to win. He likes to take the game forward and encourages players to get on the front foot and go hard," he added.Root's ton on Friday in Manchester was his 12th Test hundred against India. He thus broke former Australian captain Steve Smith's record, who has 11 Test tons against the Indian team.#3 Sanjay ManjrekarFormer India batter Sanjay Manjrekar also doesn't see any reason why Root shouldn't go past Tendulkar's run tally in Test cricket, barring a drastic loss in form. He opined that the 34-year-old has great fitness levels and also pointed out to the fact that England play a lot of Test cricket. Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo:"I don't see any red flags with Joe Root. He gets out to Bumrah outside off, but there aren't many like Bumrah around. Fitness wise, he's built just right. He doesn't have a weight issue. Virat Kohli had a big weakness to deal with and that actually stunted his growth in the final few years."England play a lot of Test cricket and I see him having a good chance of getting there. Eventually when he gets very close, I don't know what he will do. We have examples of people, out of respect, not getting there. But, he's got a serious chance of doing it only because he's a collector of runs," he added.Since the start of 2021, Root has played 60 Tests, scoring 5,586 runs at an average of 56.42, with 21 hundreds and 17 fifties.#4 Ricky PontingFormer Australian captain Ponting, who has moved down to third on the list of leading Test run-getters after being overtaken by Root, is also confident of the England star surpassing Tendulkar. Speaking on Sky Sports, he commented:“Magnificent from Joe Root. This is a great moment in history. The way his career has gone, there is absolutely no reason why he will not go past Tendulkar. He is elegant, stylish, hungry. He has made it clear he is not one for stats and you are not when you are playing, but when you finish you can be proud of what you have achieved."Root is the leading run-getter in the World Test Championship (WTC). In 124 innings, he has scored 5,946 runs at an average of 52.61, with the aid of 20 hundreds and 22 half-centuries.#5 Michael AthertonAccording to former England captain Michael Atherton, Root will have a decent chance of going past Tendulkar's Test record if he continues his current form. He, however, stopped short of making a prediction, stating that injuries and fitness issues cannot be predicted in advance. Atherton told Sky Sports:“Root averages about 85 runs a Test match, so he’d likely need 30 Test matches to get up to Sachin. You never know what lies ahead in terms of freak injuries, sport can be a cruel mistress, but given a fair wind he should be up to Tendulkar in around two and a half years.“Given how he’s playing right now – the best he’s ever played – and given there’s no diminishing of his love and desire for the game, the numbers will take care of themselves,” he added.With 104 fifty-plus scores in Tests, Root has gone past Kallis (103) and Ponting (103). Only Tendulkar (119) has registered more fifty-plus scores in Test cricket.