England skipper Joe Root confident of MCG ton

Joe Root. Pic/AFP

Joe Root has backed himself to bang out a hundred as England face a must-win Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and says he expects a response from his team after successive Ashes defeats.

The England captain has never reached three figures in Australia but he went close in the nine wicket-defeat in the first Test in Brisbane (89) before hitting 62 in Adelaide, when they crashed by 275 runs.

"I feel in a really good place with my batting," said Root. "I feel confident I can, in these next three games, bang out a hundred in these conditions. I know that's a brave thing to say but my conversion rate this year, it's not been an issue at all. I expect a response from our players and I would like to bring a nice Christmas present home for everyone who stays up," he added.

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