Joe Root Leaves Alastair Cook Behind To Become England’s Leading Test Run-Getter

Joe Root, former England captain, attained a huge record on day 3 of the ongoing first Test against Pakistan in Multan on October 9, 2024. He left behind Sir Alastair Cook to become the all-time leading Test run-getter for England.

The right-handed batter surpassed legendary England batter Alastair Cook’s long-standing record of 12,472 runs to become England’s all-time leading run scorer in Test cricket.

Joe Root made history in just 268 innings, while Cook needed 291 innings to score 12,472 runs in Test cricket. In the conventional game style, the former England player has 33 centuries and 57 fifties to his name, whereas Root has 34 hundreds and 65 fifties.

The right-handed batsman now has the most centuries, fifties, and runs in Test cricket for England, cementing his place among the game’s all-time greats. Overall, Root has scored the fifth-most runs in Test cricket history.

Joe Root inches closer to Sachin Tendulkar’s record; and breaks into the top 5 of the most Test runs list

Thanks to leaving behind Alastair Cook’s record of 12472 runs in Tests, Joe Root has joined the elite ranks of the top five highest run scorers in Test cricket history.

Interestingly, in England’s last Test series against Sri Lanka, Root also surpassed Cook’s English record for most centuries in the longest format, smashing his 34th hundred during the second Test.

Sachin Tendulkar (15,921 runs), Ricky Ponting (13,378), Jacques Kallis (13,289 runs), and Rahul Dravid (13,288 runs) are the only players who have scored more Test runs than Root.

Apart from Tendulkar, Indian batting hero Rahul Dravid and iconic South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis’ records are in jeopardy, as Root now needs about 800 more runs to surpass these greats and come close to the Master Blaster.

If Root can sustain his present form, he will shatter Dravid, Kallis, and Ricky Ponting’s records to become the all-time second-highest Test run-scorer by the end of 2025. Well, the former England captain is batting fiercely against Pakistan in Multan.

Here’s a look at the top run-scorers in Test history:

• Sachin Tendulkar (India) – 15,921
• Ricky Ponting (Australia) – 13,378
• Jacques Kallis (South Africa) – 13, 289
• Rahul Dravid (India) – 13,288
• Joe Root (England) – 12,473

At 33, Root’s career is far from done, and many believe he will rival Sachin Tendulkar for the most runs in red-ball cricket. Root’s quest of even larger milestones looks promising, given that he already holds the record for England’s top Test run-scorer. He is fewer than 1,000 runs away from surpassing Ponting, who is in second position.

Also Read: ‘Gutted’ Sam Curran Opens Up On Overlooked As Ben Stokes’ Replacement In 1st Test vs Pakistan!!