Joe Root scripts history, becomes first-ever batter to reach this milestone, even Virat Kohli hasn’t got close

Written By Chankesh Rao | Updated: Oct 09, 2024, 04:24 PM IST

Courtesy: X

Last month, Root broke the record for most Test centuries by an English player when he scored two hundred against Sri Lanka at Lord’s.

Joe Root, the standout batsman for the England cricket team, achieved a remarkable milestone on Day 2 of the first Test match against Pakistan in Multan. Root made history by becoming the first player to reach 5000 runs in the World Test Championship (WTC). He achieved this feat by scoring 32 runs off 54 balls, which included two boundaries. Needing only 27 runs to reach this landmark before the match, Root's total now stands at 5005 runs across 59 WTC matches. Following him are Australia's Marnus Labuschagne with 3904 runs and Steve Smith in third place with 3484 runs.

The moment when Joe Root surpassed Alastair Cook's record to become England's highest run-scorer in Test cricket was truly historic. This occurred when Root hit a straight drive for four during the first Test against Pakistan at the Multan International Cricket Stadium. His career total of 12,473 runs now stands just one run ahead of Cook's previous record of 12,472.

In addition to this achievement, Root recently set a new record for the most Test centuries by an English player by scoring two hundreds against Sri Lanka at Lord's last month. He currently ranks fifth on the all-time list of leading run-scorers in Test cricket, trailing behind Rahul Dravid by more than 800 runs.

Furthermore, Joe Root is closing in on the remarkable record set by Sachin Tendulkar, who scored 1000 or more Test runs in a calendar year on six occasions during his illustrious career. 

Root now requires just one more calendar year in which he scores 1,000 Test runs to equal Sachin Tendulkar's record of achieving this feat in six different years. Achieving this milestone would position Root alongside one of the game's legends, further establishing his legacy in Test cricket.

Sachin Tendulkar currently holds the record with an impressive total of six calendar years in which he accumulated 1,000-plus Test runs. Joe Root, with five such years under his belt, has now joined an exclusive group of batters, including Brian Lara, Matthew Hayden, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara, and Alastair Cook, who have also reached this milestone in five calendar years. Root's next 1,000-run year would see him equal Tendulkar's record, underscoring his consistency and prowess in the longest format of the game.

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