Joe Root in Tests is a different beast, and has been scoring heavily in the format for the last few years now. While batting on Thursday, against Zimbabwe in the four-day Test, the former England skipper became the fastest man to get to 13,000 runs in the longest format. During his innings of 34, Root brought up the milestone in only 153 innings.
Joe Root Conquers Mt. 13,000
Meanwhile, Joe Root surpassed South Africa’s Jacques Kallis, who achieved the record in 159 matches. The fastest Indian on the list is Rahul Dravid, who crossed the barrier in 160 matches, while Sachin Tendulkar took 163 overall. Having said that, Root took the most number of innings.
Fastest to 13,000 Test Runs (Matches)
Joe Root – 153*
Jacques Kallis – 159
Rahul Dravid – 160
Ricky Ponting – 162
Sachin Tendulkar – 163
Slowest to 13,000 Test Runs (Innings)
Sachin Tendulkar – 266
Jacques Kallis – 269
Ricky Ponting – 275
Rahul Dravid – 277
Joe Roo – 279*
England on Top vs Zimbabwe
The fastest there is Sachin, in 266 innings, followed by Kallis in 269. Dravid took 277 innings, while Root took 279. To add to that, Root is also the leading run-getter in the WTC history. Overall, he has scored 13,006 runs at an average of 50.8, including 65 fifties and 36 tons. As far as the England vs Zimbabwe match is concerned, the host were in punishing mood, as they scored 498/3 in 88 overs. Three England batters went on to score tons — Zak Crawley made 124, Ben Duckett struck 140, while Ollie Pope is unbeaten on 169.
Root striking form is not great news for Team India, who are due to play their five-match Test series, starting June 20 in Headingly. But would be even more bothersome for the visitors is, they would be without the services of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and R Ashwin.
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