Star England middle-order batter Joe Root scripted history to become the first batter in World Test Championship (WTC) history to surpass 4000 runs during the ongoing first test against England in Hyderabad. The former England captain has 4005 runs in 48 Tests.
Joe Root accomplished this historic feat on Day 1 of the first Test at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi Stadium. The 33-year-old before stepping out to bat at number four required only 13 runs to accomplish 4000 runs in this third WTC cycle, and managed to score 29 runs in the 1st innings before being dismissed by Ravindra Jadeja.
The former England captain also surpassed Sachin Tendulkar as the leading run-scorer in the India-England Tests during Thursday’s match in Hyderabad. Joe Root needed just 10 runs to break Tendulkar’s record when he took the field in Hyderabad, and he did so in style, blasting a boundary off Axar Patel in the 21st over of England’s opening innings.
Joe Root has scored 2,526 runs across 25 matches against India. Sachin Tendulkar formerly held the record for 2,535 runs in 32 matches versus England, at an average of 51.73. Tendulkar’s extraordinary record spans seven hundred and thirteen half-centuries.
Joe Root’s Test cricket career began in India in 2012, where he impressed everyone with his tenacious and determined performance throughout the series. Root’s highest score against India came during England’s previous trip in 2021. Leading the side, he scored an outstanding 218 in the first Test in Chennai, securing England’s only victory in the series.
England side opened the game the Bazball way, scoring the first 50 runs at a very healthy strike rate.
However, as soon as spinners were deployed, Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley were troubled in the middle, with the former taking Ashwin’s first wicket of the game. Then, Jadeja dismissed Ollie Pope with a routine catch for Rohit Sharma at first slip, before Ashwin caught Crawley’s leg-before wicket to put England in deep trouble.
Axar Patel began England’s rapid demise in the 1st innings by cleaning up dangerous Jonny Bairstow. Joe Root, who was expected to score big for England on day one, was forced to leave the middle after mistiming an attempted reverse sweep shot, which took the edge of his bat and fell into the hand of Jasprit Bumrah.