England international and one of the best players to play test cricket, Joe Root, has broken yet another record in cricket’s oldest format, and this time he has broken the record of becoming the fastest player to score 13000 runs in the test format. Root achieved this record during the one-off test match against Zimbabwe. Root just needed 28 runs to achieve this feat, and the English batter did it in his style by nudging a single off Victor Nyauchi in the 80th over. Root has achieved this milestone in just 153 appearances, which has put him ahead of legends like Jacques Kallis, who achieved this in 159 matches, Rahul Dravid(160), Ricky Ponting(162), and the “God” of cricket, Sachin Tendulkar, who took 163 matches. Root has also become the first English batter to achieve this feat and to breach the 13000 runs mark. He is also only the fifth player in the history of the game to achieve this feat.
Greatest out of the FAB 4?
This generation of cricket was ruled by the Fab 4 batters, who ruled all the cricketing records of the modern generation. Root looks like the best batter out of the Fab in test format, as his stats prove why he is the best. Kane Williamson and Steve Smith are way behind the Englishman in records, and the consistency Joe Root has in the oldest format cannot be replicated by anyone. The 4th member of the Fab 4, Virat Kohli, recently retired from the test format. He was Root’s competition when it came to consistency, but with his retirement, Root is all set to dominate the oldest format of the game for some more time ahead. Steve Smith can pose Root with some challenges as Smith is also regarded as the modern great for Australia, and it will be interesting to see how the rivalry of Williamson, Root, and Smith will look like in the future.
Root to break Sachin’s record?
Root now has 13,006 runs in test matches, and he is only 2915 runs away from Tendulkar’s record as the ‘GOD’ of cricket scored 15,921 runs in his test career. When Sachin retired with this record, it seemed like no one could ever break this record, but now Joe Root, the Englishman, is close to the record. The 34-year-old man still has a lot of cricket left, and England is a team that plays a lot of test cricket. England is all set to face India in June-July for 5 test matches. Root would be looking to get some runs in that series as well. Root has also managed to maintain his fitness level and has largely avoided any major injuries, which is an essential trait for having a long international career. His unwavering focus on the oldest format strengthens his case as a serious contender to break Sachin Tendulkar’s record. In the upcoming series, Root will be looking to close the gap and will also be looking to climb up on the list of highest run getters in test format he can potentially climb up to the second position if he has a good series and can leave behind legend like Rahul Dravid, Kallis and Ricky Ponting.
About the Author
Arpit Sharma is a sports writer and journalism student at Chandigarh University, with a strong interest in sports analysis and storytelling. His writing combines match insights with a fresh, fan-first perspective that brings the game to life.
Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Vygr's views.
With inputs from agencies
Image Source: Multiple agencies
©️ Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved. Powered by Vygr Media.
