Joe Root Becomes Leading Run Scorer For England in Tests, Leaves Alastair Cook Behind

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Star England batter Joe Root on Wednesday (October 9) added another feather in his illustrious feather as he became the leading run scorer for England in Test cricket.

In the first innings of the opening Test against Pakistan in Multan, the Yorkshire cricketer surpassed legendary English batter Alastair Cook and became the leading run-getter in the red-ball format for his country.

Cook - who scored 12472 runs in 161 Tests - has slipped to sixth spot in the all-time leading run-scorers list in Test cricket after Root - who required 71 runs to leapfrog his former teammate - achieved it in his 147th Test match with a boundary off Aamer Jamal.

Top 5 Run Getters in Test Cricket of All Time

Indian batting great Sachin Tendulkar sits at the top of the table with 15921 runs in 200 Tests, Root's next target would be leapfrogging Indian batting great and former coach Rahul Dravid and South African legend Jacques Kallis. Dravid sits at fourth position with 13288 runs in 164 Tests while Kallis amassed 13289 runs in 166 games he played for the Proteas.

Australian batting great Ricky Pointing is the second-highest run-scorer after Tendulkar in Test cricket as the right-handed batter from Tasmania amassed 13378 runs in the red-ball format in 168 Tests.

Joe Root - Man on a Mission

Root (33) has been in menacing form in Test cricket over the last five years and has been on a record-breaking spree. Earlier in the day, the stylish right-handed batter became the first cricketer to amass 5000 runs in World Test Championships. The English batting great took just 59 games to achieve this historic milestone.

Most prolific run-scorers in Test cricket since 2021

Root has been the leading run-scorer in Test cricket since 2021. He leads the list with an impressive 4579 runs in 90 innings across 49 matches, boasting a remarkable average of 55.84 and a strike rate of 61.63. He has also registered 17 centuries and 15 half-centuries in this period.

Australia's Usman Khawaja follows the English with 2564 runs at an average of 53.41 in 54 innings from 29 matches. Marnus Labuschagne is third with 2526 runs at a solid average of 45.10.

Dimuth Karunaratne, Steven Smith, and Ollie Pope have also made significant contributions, with Karunaratne averaging 51.14 and Smith 47.07. Zak Crawley and Ben Stokes appear lower on the list, with Stokes contributing 2080 runs but maintaining a lower average of 32.