India vs England 4th Test: After Dravid, Kallis, Joe Root goes past Ricky Ponting for most Test runs

Joe Root extended his dominance over India with yet another masterclass, notching up his 12th Test century against them in the fourth Test at Old Trafford. The hundred, studded with 12 fours and no sixes, reaffirmed his status as India's ultimate nemesis in the longest format.

While he reached his century in style, 20 runs later, he jumped to second in the list of players with most runs in the longest format. In a landmark innings, England's Root now holds second spot in the elite list, and only has the legendary Sachin Tendulkar in front of him.

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The Indian legend, in 329 innings over 200 managed an inimitable 15921 runs. But for Root, the climb continued as he leapfrogged Ricky Ponting, who earlier had 2nd spot with 13378. Root, in the 3rd Day of the 4th Test, has now gone past the Australian legend and former skipper.

Additionally, Root was congratulated by Ricky Ponting on comms, saying ,"With the way he's been playing for the last five years, there's no reason he shouldn't break Sachin Tendulkar's record."

With this ton, Root surpassed Australia's Steve Smith, who previously held the record against India with 11 tons in Tests.

This was also Root's ninth century against India in home conditions, which is the most by any batter against a single opponent on home soil. He broke Australia legend Don Bradman’s long-standing record of eight tons at home against England.

The 33-year-old continued rewriting the record books throughout his innings. He equalled the record for most Test hundreds in home conditions (23), joining Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, and Mahela Jayawardene.


Earlier in the match, Root also overtook Rahul Dravid (13,288) and Jacques Kallis (13,289) to move into third place on the all-time Test run-scoring chart. With this knock, he now trails only Sachin Tendulkar.

Root also became the first batter to complete 1000 Test runs at Old Trafford and just the third Englishman after Alastair Cook and Graham Gooch to achieve 1000-plus runs at two venues, having already amassed over 2000 runs at Lord's.

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, speaking on Sky Sports Cricket before play, praised Root's evolution. “How he's transformed from someone that couldn't go on past fifty to hundreds — now it seems like every time he gets to fifty, you just mark him down for a hundred,” Ponting said.



Adding another layer to his glittering resume, Root also moved into second place for most fifty-plus scores in Test cricket, going past Ponting and Kallis.

On a flat Day 3 pitch, Root’s fluency made life miserable for India’s bowlers, who struggled to dislodge England’s most reliable Test batter of the era.

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