Joe Root added another massive milestone to his career on Day 3 of the fourth Test between England and India at Old Trafford. With a century, Root climbed past Ricky Ponting to become the second-highest run-scorer in Test cricket history.
He is now trailing only the great Sachin Tendulkar. The 34-year-old England star began the day on 11 and went on to script a remarkable innings.
Follow The Sporting News India on WhatsApp
Along the way, he leapfrogged Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis and Ponting in quick succession - all legends of the format. Root brought up his 120th run with a steer to deep point off Anshul Kamboj - the moment that pushed him past Ponting's tally of 13,378 runs.
Ricky Ponting reacts as Joe Root overtakes his 13,378 Test runs tally
Ponting was on commentary for Sky Sports; he watched the moment live and paid a heartfelt tribute to Root's achievement.
"Congratulations, Joe Root. Magnificent. Second on the table, 120 not out. This crowd at the ground, this very knowledgeable crowd here at Old Trafford, stands as one.. Just the one more to go now, Ponting lauded.
More: Who has scored the most Test centuries against India? Joe Root goes past Steve Smith's record
Root is now sitting at 13,400 Test runs and is just over 2,500 runs behind Tendulkar's record of 15,921 - a gap Ponting believes isn't impossible to close.
"The way his career has gone over the last four or five years, there's absolutely no reason why not. You don't really remember a long period where he's had a lean run. These last few years, every start seems to become a hundred - and big hundreds at that," he added.
The moment.
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 25, 2025
And he's not done yet... pic.twitter.com/retSKGgBsV
This knock was Root's 38th Test hundred, tying him with Kumar Sangakkara on the all-time list. He also crossed the 50-mark for the 104th time - second only to Tendulkar's 119.
The Manchester crowd gave Root a warm ovation and even Indian captain Shubman Gill joined in the applause. England, leading the series 2-1, will hope Root's form can help them seal the series with a game to spare.
Top 5 batters with most runs in Test cricket
| Player | Country | Matches | Runs | Average | 50s/100s | High Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sachin Tendulkar | India | 200 | 15921 | 53.78 | 68/51 | 248* |
| Joe Root | England | 157 | 13409 | 51.17 | 66/38 | 262 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 168 | 13378 | 51.85 | 62/41 | 257 |
| Jacques Kallis | South Africa | 166 | 13289 | 55.37 | 58/45 | 224 |
| Rahul Dravid | India | 164 | 13288 | 52.31 | 63/36 | 270 |