Joe Root makes history with 5000 WTC runs, breaks Alastair Cook’s record as England’s top Test run-scorer (Source: X/Twitter)
Batting stalwart of England, Joe Root, who currently sits at the helm in the ICC Test rankings, scripted yet another history on Tuesday, October 8, by becoming the first-ever batter in the World Test Championship (WTC) history of scaling the 5000-run mark.
Moreover, by scoring his 72nd run in the ongoing knock a day after, he now has become England’s leading run-getter in Test history and has surpassed the legendary former opener, Sir Alastair Cook. Notably, Root achieved the feat during the last session on Day 2 and then carried on his sublime batting on Day 3, respectively, of the ongoing first Test against Pakistan, in Multan.
The premier English batter carried the bat (32* off 54 balls) with two boundaries to his name before stumps. For the unversed, the 33-year-old needed just 27 runs to reach the milestone before the start of the Test series. As a result, in the first game, the batting maestro easily surpassed the needed tally. Currently, batting on 72* in the 45th over of the innings, Root has now amassed 5,045 runs after having featured in 59 games so far.
Behind him, Australia’s flamboyant batter Marnus Labuschagne follows in the second position with 3,904 runs from 45 WTC appearances. While in the third spot, his compatriot and the Australian team’s mainstay, Steve Smith, has accumulated 3,486 runs so far from as many matches as Labuschagne has appeared in.
Now speaking of Joe Root’s overall Test career, the run machine has amassed 12, 473 runs until now and has etched his name in the elite history of English cricket. Now in the second spot, Alastair Cook who tormented the opposition with his solid opening batting, scored 12,472 runs from 161 appearances for England in Tests. His illustrious career spanned between 2006 and 2018, respectively.
Interestingly, if Root continues with batting mojo during the current knock and goes on to score a century, it will be his 35th Test century. This essentially would mean that he would add another feature to an already remarkable career. Joe Root will become only the sixth batter in Test history to have scored 34 or more centuries after former legends like the former India legends Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara, Mahela Jayawardene, and Younis Khan.
Root can become the sixth batter to score 35 or more centuries in Tests
Root, who is the all-time leading run scorer in WTC history, has 12,473 runs to his name in Test cricket, while the former England skipper Cook finished his Test career with 12,472 runs in 161 matches for England from 2006 to 2018. When it comes to overall Test history, India’s former batting legend Sachin Tendulkar continues to rule the roost with 51 centuries from a mind-boggling 200 Test appearances.
The next best tally goes to the legendary all rounder of South Africa (45), while Ricky Ponting (41), Kumar Sangakkara (38), and Rahul Dravid (36) have all scored more than 35 centuries. The record-breaking streak further extends if he scores 102 runs in the current knock to become the first batter to have scored 1,500 runs in all the three editions of WTC that have been played so far.
Most runs in the World Test Championship
| Player | Country | Total Runs |
| Joe Root | England | 5,005* |
| Marnus Labuschagne | Australia | 3,904 |
| Steve Smith | Australia | 3,486 |
| Ben Stokes | England | 3,101 |
| Babar Azam | Pakistan | 2,755 |
Players with 35 or more centuries in Tests
| Player | Country | Total Centuries in Tests |
| Sachin Tendulkar | India | 51 |
| Jacques Kallis | South Africa | 45 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 41 |
| Kumara Sangakkara | Sri Lanka | 38 |
| Rahul Dravid | India | 36 |
| Joe Root | England | 35* |
*Updated stats as of October 09, 2024.