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ToggleJust when England found themselves struggling in their first innings at the score of 54, losing half of their side, they needed someone to stand up and take up out of the position. Who could have been better than the Yorkshire lad- Joe Root, who has been doing the same job for the side since making his debut in 2012?
On a flat surface at Edgbaston in Birmingham, West Indies didn’t display a great show of their batting performance, having been bundled out for just 282 runs in their first innings, despite enjoying a 76-run opening partnership between captain Kraigg Braithwaite and Mikyle Louis.
The middle order saw a 109-run stand for the sixth wicket between Joshua Da Silva and Jason Holder, but that wasn’t enough for them to get over the 300-run mark. England were under serious pressure at the start, after losing both their openers and nightwatchman Mark Wood in a small one-hour period towards the end of the first day of the Test. Joe Root somehow survived the little session, against the firing pace bowling of Alzarri Joseph and Jayden Seales.
Joe Root registers new record to celebrate 12000 Test runs
At the start of the second day’s play, England lost two more wickets- in the form of Ollie Pope and Harry Brook to find themselves in more trouble as the visitors smelt a good chance to gain a healthy lead in the first innings.
But the long-time survivor of the three lions and their captain Ben Stokes put up a vital 115-run stand for the sixth between themselves before the all-rounder punched the short ball straight into the hands of his opposite number. Joe Root stayed there for another long time to manage another 62-run stand for the seventh wicket before he was dismissed on 87 runs.
In this process, the right-handed batter achieved a new milestone when he smashed Joseph for a boundary to reach 62 on his very first ball after the lunch break. The former captain of the side brought up 12000 Test runs, becoming just the second England batter to achieve the feat after Sir Alastair Cook. He is now also the seventh batter around the world to touch the landmark.
The bat wave, trigger movement, the late cuts, the beautiful drives- everything was there in the knock of Root, who was a little disappointed after missing out on centuries in back-to-back Test innings.
The England batter recorded his 95th Test fifty-plus score during the knock, which is now the sixth-best among all the batters of world cricket. In terms of other records, Joe Root also becomes the second youngest to reach the milestone of 12000 Test runs.
At the age of 33 years and 210 days, he piled up the runs, as his former captain A Cook stands at the number one position of the record list, by achieving the feat at the age of 33y 13d. Interestingly, Rahul Dravid is the oldest to reach the mark at the age of 37 years and 339 days.
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Youngest players to 12000 Test runs
Alastair Cook- 33y 13d
Joe Root- 33y 210d
Sachin Tendulkar- 35y 176d
Ricky Ponting- 35y 214d
Jacques Kallis- 36y 32d
Kumar Sangakkara- 37y 68d
Rahul Dravid- 37y 339d
In terms of innings, Root is the second slowest to mark the feat, as the former Sri Lanka wicket-keeper batter Sangakkara is the fastest to celebrate the record.
Fastest players in terms of innings to reach 12000 Test runs
224- Kumar Sangakkara
247- Ricky Ponting
247- Sachin Tendulkar
249- Jacques Kallis
255- Rahul Dravid
261- Joe Root
275- Alastair Cook