Joe Root: England batter passes 10,000 Test runs

Joe Root has become the second England batter to score 10,000 Test runs.

Root reached the landmark by scoring a century on day four of the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s.

He is the 14th player to achieve the feat, with ex-captain Sir Alastair Cook the only other England player to do so.

Aged 31 years and 157 days, Root has reached 10,000 runs at exactly the same age as Cook – making the pair the joint-youngest players to reach the milestone.

Former captain Root told BBC Test Match Special: “I just love batting, I want to score as many runs as I can for the group and it’s nice to do it at the start of the summer.

“It is nice to spoken about in the same breath as England’s greatest ever batter Alastair Cook, it is a privilege.”

Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, Rahul Dravid, Kumar Sangakkara, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Mahela Jayawardene, Allan Border, Steve Waugh, Sunil Gavaskar and Younis Khan are the other batters to reach the milestone.

Cook said: “I was so glad I was here to witness that – an unbelievable knock by an unbelievable player.

“He is the most complete England batsman in all forms.”

Last year Root scored 1,708 Test runs, the third best haul in history, as he found remarkable form despite the struggles of England’s other batters.

He has scored 26 Test centuries, the second most for England behind Cook, who hit 33.

Lara, Tendulkar and Sangakkara are the joint-quickest to 10,000 Test runs in terms of innings, with all three taking 195 knocks to reach the total, while Lara is the quickest in terms of matches, doing so in his 111th Test.

Root achieved the feat in 218 innings, compared to 229 for Cook, but is the only batter to achieve the feat in less than 10 years after his debut – this is his 118th Test since he first played against India in 2012.

The numbers behind Root’s 10,000 Player Age Date achieved Joe Root (England) 31 years, 157 days 5 June 2022 Alastair Cook (England) 31 years, 157 days 30 May 2016 Sachin Tendulkar (India) 31 years, 326 days 16 March 2005 Jacques Kallis (South Africa) 33 years, 134 days 27 Feb 2009 Ricky Ponting (Australia) 33 years, 163 days 30 May 2008 1. Sachin Tendulkar (Ind) – 15,921 8. Shivnarine Chanderpaul (WI) – 11,867 2. Ricky Ponting (Aus) – 13,378 9. Mahela Jayawardene (SL) – 11,814 3. Jacques Kallis (SA) – 13,289 10. Allan Border (Aus) – 11,174 4. Rahul Dravid (Ind) – 13,288 11. Steve Waugh (Aus) – 10,927 5. Alastair Cook (Eng) – 12,472 12. Sunil Gavaskar (Ind) – 10,122 6. Kumar Sangakkara (SL) – 12,400 13. Younis Khan (Pak) – 10,099 7. Brian Lara (WI) – 11,953 14. Joe Root (Eng) – 10,015 Innings Joe Root Alastair Cook Sachin Tendulkar 100 4,789 4,168 4,962 150 6,775 6,912 7,869 200 9,278 8,691 10,265 218 10,015 9,780 10,769 291 12,472 14,726 329 15,921 Root’s most productive year was in 2021 where he scored 1,708, but he could play in another six Tests in 2022 and is well positioned to pass 1,000 runs in a calendar year for the fourth time ‘A spine tingling ovation’ – how social media reacted

Jon: Joe Root – one of the all time greats. Undisputed. What a player. What a man.

Emma: ROOOOOOOOOT! A ton and ten thousand Test career runs. Awesome, incredible cricketer.

Dave: Joe Root is an absolute phenomenon. What a privilege to watch him bat. A master.

Rob: Joe Root. What a player! Arguably England’s greatest ever batsman. He may no longer be captain, but he’s still leading by example. We are lucky to have him. Congratulations on 10,000 runs and another majestic Test century.

AJ Peake: If Root can have another four-five years even approaching what he did in 2021, he will be right up there to break Tendulkar’s record. We’ve been incredibly lucky to see this man bat.

Simon: Humble, modest, selfless and an absolute master of his art. What a fitting weekend for our greatest current national sporting treasure to shine so brightly.