WATCH: Ricky Ponting makes bold prediction on Joe Root possibly breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s all-time Test runs record; says “he might well do that.”
New Delhi: On the morning of the third day of the India-England fourth Test being played at Old Trafford in Manchester, England’s star batsman Joe Root set a big record. Root surpassed Rahul Dravid and Jacques Kallis to become the third-highest run scorer in Test cricket. He needed just 31 runs to surpass Kallis’ 13,289 runs, which he completed by taking a single on the fifth ball of the 58th over.
Opportunity to reach second place
Root, who is at the top of the ICC Test batsmen’s rankings, now has a golden opportunity to achieve the second position on Friday. For this, he will have to score at least 120 runs in the first innings.
A challenge to overtake Ricky Ponting
Before the ongoing 4th Test match between India and England at Old Trafford, the second-highest run scorer in Test cricket is former Australian captain Ricky Ponting. Ponting played 168 Test matches for Australia from 1995 to 2012 and scored 13,378 runs.
Ricky ponting on Joe root #indvseng pic.twitter.com/X2r7ahj4ao
— Ankit Pandey (@AnkitPande97062) July 26, 2025
Ponting’s reaction
Before the start of the third day’s play at Old Trafford, Ponting was asked if Root could overtake him. To this he said, “If he continues to play like this, it can happen today itself. This is a great day for batting and Joe Root’s career has been really amazing.”
Is Sachin Tendulkar’s record also in danger?
Ponting also said that Joe Root has a full chance to break Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 15,921 runs. He said, “37 Test centuries, more than 13,000 runs – an amazing career so far, and there is still a lot of cricket left. Root is 35 years old and his passion for the game is intact. Let’s see if he can break Sachin’s record too.”
However, Joe Root has overtaken Ricky Ponting during the fourth Test against India at Old Trafford to become the second highest run scorer in Test cricket. He now has 13,409 runs in Tests, surpassing Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis and Ponting (13,378 runs). The moment of this historic achievement came when Root created this record by taking a single behind point. Now only Sachin Tendulkar is ahead of him in Test cricket, who has 15,921 runs to his name.
