England star batsman Joe Root has scripted another historic milestone in the realm of Test cricket. During the second innings of the Test match against Pakistan at Lord's, the moment he took his 17th run, Root shattered a major world record held by Ricky Ponting. With this feat, he has now become the leading run-scorer in Test cricket on home soil. Although he managed only 24 runs in the second innings, that brief knock proved more than enough to etch his name deeply into cricket history.
A 14-year-old record belonging to Ricky Ponting broken
Joe Root stands today as the batsman with the highest number of runs in Test cricket on English soil. Reaching 24 runs in the second innings against Pakistan took his overall tally in home Tests to 7594 runs. Previously, this prominent record belonged to legendary Australian batsman and former captain Ricky Ponting, who accumulated 7578 runs playing Test cricket in Australia. Root accomplished this milestone across 89 Test matches spanning 156 innings. His stellar average at home sits at 53.85, accompanied by 24 centuries and 35 half-centuries in home conditions.
Already ahead of Sachin Tendulkar
The English batting stalwart has been rewriting record books consistently over recent times. He had already surpassed Sachin Tendulkar in terms of overall home runs in Test cricket. Root now sits proudly at the pinnacle of the list for most runs scored in home conditions. Despite scaling this historic peak, he could not convert his start into a substantial score in the second innings, eventually getting dismissed by Pakistani fast bowler Mohammad Ali.
Missed out on breaking another Sachin record
Root had another significant record within his grasp during the same fixture, though he ultimately missed out on claiming it. As things stand, Joe Root and Sachin Tendulkar share the exact same number of half-centuries in Test cricket, with both legends holding 68 fifties to their names. Root had notched up his 68th half-century during the opening Test against Pakistan played in Leeds. Had he managed to cross the fifty-run threshold in the second innings at Lord's, he would have surpassed Sachin's mark.
