Joe Root Completes 10,000 Runs In Test Cricket, Sachin’s Record Achievable, Reckons Mark Taylor

Joe Root became the latest entrant to the 10,000-run club in Test cricket, achieving the rare feat on Day 4 of the opening Test against New Zealand on Sunday. Root became only the second Englishman to reach the milestone after Alastair Cook and the 14th overall. He reached the 10,000-run mark in his 218th innings, becoming the fastest England batter to do so. Cook had reached the landmark in his 229th innings. Incidentally, Root is also the joint-youngest to reach the mark along with Cook, both of whom reached the milestone at the age of 31y 157d Unburdened by captaincy, Joe Root was back to his old self as he peeled off a 26th Test century while guiding England to an impressive five-wicket win over New Zealand in the series opening clash at the Lord’s on Sunday.

Root reached the milestone in the 77th over with a flick for two and with that he also completed 10,000 runs in Test cricket becoming the second over Englishman to accomplish the feat after former captain Alastair Cook.

2021, in particular, was a splendid year for Root. He finished the year with 1708 Test runs in 15 matches at an average of 61. 00. It was the third-highest runs aggregated in a calendar year by any player in Test history. He capped off an incredible 2021 with the ICC Men’s Test Player of the Year Award.

Ex Australian skipper Mark Taylor told Sky Sports: “Root has minimum five years left in him, so I think Tendulkar’s record is very achievable.

“He is batting as well as I have ever seen him bat over the last 18 months to two years. He is in the prime of his career, so there is 15,000 runs-plus for him if he stays healthy.”

Similarly Ex-Aussie Mel Jones reckons, “maybe 16 or 17,000″ Test runs is attainable for Root now he no longer has the pressures of captaincy to deal with.”

The English team has had some tough times during last one year. However, Joe Root the batsman continued his form while as a captain he failed to bring the best out of the individuals and team. Now, things are looking to be back on track for the Englishmen.