Joe Root entered the record books by becoming England's most prolific Test batsman on 9 October by knocking former skipper Alastair Cook off his long-held position at the top of the list. Cook was the run-scorer for England having finished in 161 Tests with 12,472 runs. Root broke that record on his 147th Test when he did manage to score 71 runs in the first innings for his side against Pakistan at Multan, taking his run tally to 12,473 runs. Most Test Runs for England Joe Root - 12,473* Alastair Cook - 12,472 Graham Gooch - 8900 Alec Stewart - 8463 David Gower - 8231 This achievement placed Root at number five on all-time record highest run-scorers in Test cricket. The Indian Sachin Tendulkar sits atop the list with 15,921 runs. The other players ahead of Root include Australians Ricky Ponting in third with 13,378 runs and South Africa's Jacques Kallis in fourth with 13,289 runs, as well as Indians Rahul Dravid in the same position with 13,288 runs. HISTORY IS MADE! 🙌We are witnessing sheer greatness.🐐 Congratulations, Rooty! 👏#EnglandCricket | @root66 pic.twitter.com/rSAXb3LKEo — England Cricket (@englandcricket) October 9, 2024 Also Watch | Rohit Sharma Stops His Car in Mumbai to Wish Fan on Her Birthday Players with Most Runs in Test Cricket Sachin Tendulkar – 15,921 Ricky Ponting – 13,378 Jacques Kallis – 13, 289 Rahul Dravid – 13,288 Joe Root – 12,473* The day before, Root also became the first player to reach 5,000 runs in the World Test Championship (WTC). He is at the top of the WTC charts for the most runs, matches, and centuries. Root is well placed to convert a good start into a century, which will also help England challenge Pakistan's hopes of a strong lead. A century would be Root's 35th in Tests, which will place him in the fourth position in the all-time list of most Test centuries as he moves ahead of Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara, Mahela Jayawardene, and Younis Khan. Sachin Tendulkar had scored the most Test centuries with 51 under his belt, followed by Jacques Kallis at 45, Ricky Ponting at 41, Kumar Sangakkara at 38 and Rahul Dravid at 36. Root's hundred would also make him the only batter to score at least 1,500 runs in all three editions of the WTC.