October 9th 2024.
Joe Root made history as he became England's all-time record run-scorer, breaking the previous record held by Sir Alastair Cook. Cook, who had backed Root to surpass his own record, watched as the Yorkshireman surpassed his tally of 12,472 Test runs on day three of the series opener against Pakistan in Multan.
Root, who also captained England, achieved this feat in 14 fewer Tests than Cook, putting him in an elite group of players including Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, and Sachin Tendulkar in terms of Test runs. In fact, Root is now only 3,000 runs behind Tendulkar, the leading run-scorer in Test history.
Root's consistency and impressive average of over 60 since the start of 2023 has put him in a strong position to challenge Tendulkar's record as he nears the twilight of his career. And while he remained focused and composed as he surpassed Cook's record, he took a moment to embrace his teammates, including the recently-retired James Anderson and injured captain Ben Stokes.
Speaking on BBC Test Match Special, Cook expressed his surprise at Root's calm reaction, saying, "Quite clearly he would have known, you just do. He’s probably got bigger fish to fry than me, maybe that explains it." He also praised Root's hunger and consistency, saying, "I’ve never seen the hunger he has in anyone’s batting...It’s just a pleasure to watch him bat now, he’s so easy on the eye."
When asked if he believes Root can surpass Tendulkar's record, Cook replied, "I can see that. When I retired I was thinking if Rooty would break my record and thought he would." He also mentioned that his successor as captain, Stokes, has helped Root's pursuit of the record due to their close friendship.
However, Cook acknowledged that Tendulkar is still the favorite to hold onto his record, but he is backing Root to surpass him. He did note that the Ashes series could be a potential hurdle for Root, but overall, he believes Root has the hunger and ability to break the record. As Cook said, "The only hurdle maybe is the Ashes because something always happens around those series...But I’m backing Rooty."
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