Root breaks Cook's record - how he scored his runs

Joe Root has surpassed Sir Alastair Cook to become England's all-time leading Test run-scorer. Root overtook Cook's total of 12,472 runs with a stylish straight drive off Aamer Jamal on day three of the first Test against Pakistan in Multan, reaching 71. At 33 years old and playing his 147th Test, Root achieved this milestone 14 matches quicker than Cook. He now ranks fifth on the global list of Test run-scorers.

Root made his Test debut in 2012 against India and has since scored 34 centuries, with a personal best of 254 against Pakistan. The Sheffield-born player, who captained England in a record 64 Tests, trails only legends like India's Rahul Dravid, South Africa's Jacques Kallis, and Australia's Ricky Ponting. India's Sachin Tendulkar tops the all-time list with 15,921 runs, but Root, in his current form, could surpass this record within a few years.

Root, averaging over 50 and enjoying a career-high form with an average of 61 since 2023, hit his 35th Test century later that day, reaching 176 not out by the end of play. Remarkably, he broke the record just hours before his younger brother Billy's wedding in south Wales

Source: BBC News