Joe Root Nears Sachin Tendulkar’s Record with 67th Test Half-Century at Lord’s
Joe Root Nears Sachin Tendulkar’s Record with 67th Test Half-Century at Lord’s
Lord’s, July 10:
England’s star batter Joe Root reached a major milestone on Day 1 of the third Test against India at Lord’s. Root scored his 67th half-century in Test cricket, moving just one behind Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar, who holds the all-time record with 68.
Root brought up his fifty in the 46th over by hitting a four off Nitish Kumar Reddy. This was his 284th innings in Test cricket. With this knock, Root went past Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who had 66 half-centuries in Tests.
Most Half-Centuries in Test Cricket
| Player | Country | Matches | Half-Centuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sachin Tendulkar | India | 200 | 68 |
| Joe Root | England | 156* | 67 |
| Shivnarine Chanderpaul | West Indies | 164 | 66 |
| Rahul Dravid | India/ICC | 164 | 63 |
| Allan Border | Australia | 156 | 63 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 168 | 62 |
In addition, Root also matched Jacques Kallis and Ricky Ponting with 103 scores of 50 or more runs in Test cricket. Only Tendulkar has done it more times.
Most 50+ Scores in Test Cricket
| Player | Country | Matches | 50+ Scores |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sachin Tendulkar | India | 200 | 119 |
| Joe Root | England | 156* | 103 |
| Jacques Kallis | South Africa/ICC | 166 | 103 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 168 | 103 |
| Rahul Dravid | India/ICC | 164 | 99 |
Root also continued his dominance against India. His 60-run knock at Lord’s took his half-century tally against India to 13, second only to Pakistan’s Javed Miandad (14).
Most Half-Centuries Against India in Tests
| Player | Country | Matches | Half-Centuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Javed Miandad | Pakistan | 28 | 14 |
| Joe Root | England | 33* | 13 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 29 | 12 |
| Clive Lloyd | West Indies | 28 | 12 |
| Shivnarine Chanderpaul | West Indies | 25 | 10 |
Root also became the first player ever to score 3000 Test runs against India. He needed 45 runs before the Lord’s Test and reached the milestone with a four in the 43rd over off Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Batting at No. 4, Root shared a 109-run partnership with Ollie Pope (44 runs) before getting out for 60.
Root made his Test debut in December 2012 against India in Nagpur and has since become one of the greatest batters of his era.
