England’s star batter Joe Root made history on Sunday, August 3, during the fifth Test match against India at The Oval. With a century in the second innings, Root became the first player in the world to score 6000 runs in the World Test Championship(WTC). The 34-year-old achieved the milestone in his 69th WTC match, continuing his outstanding run in red-ball cricket.
Root needed just 25 runs in the second inning to reach the 6000-run mark. He had scored 29 runs in the first innings before being dismissed by a brilliant delivery from Mohammed Siraj. In the second inning, Root reached the historic figure by hitting a boundary off Siraj, gaining loud cheers from the Oval Crowd.
Most Runs in WTC History
| Rank | Player | Team | Matches | Runs |
| 1 | Joe Root | England | 69 | 6006 |
| 2 | Steve Smith | Australia | 55 | 4278 |
| 3 | M Labuschagne | Australia | 53 | 4225 |
| 4 | Ben Stokes | England | 57 | 3616 |
| 5 | Travis Head | Australia | 52 | 3300 |
Root’s consistency has been unmatched. He has an average of over 53 in WTC matches and has been a key part of England’s batting lineup since the format began. Against India alone, Root has scored over 1800 runs in WTC matches, including eight centuries and three fifties, the most by any batter against a single team in the competition.
But Root’s achievements didn’t stop there; his century at The Oval was also his 24th at home, setting a new world record for the most Test centuries on home soil. He also surpassed legends like Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, and Mahela Jayawardene, who each had 23 Test centuries at home.
Most Test centuries at Home:
| Player | Country | Home 100s |
| Joe Root | England | 24 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 23 |
| Jacques Kallis | South Africa | 23 |
| Mahela Jayawardene | Sri Lanka | 23 |
Additionally, Root now has 13 Test centuries against India, the most by any English player against a single opponent. Only Don Bradman (19 vs England) and Sunil Gavaskar (13 vs West Indies) are tied, and ahead of him in this elite list of records. Root also became the first player to score 500 or more runs in a Test series against India on three occasions, a feat which was previously achieved by only a few players, including Gary Sobers and Ricky Ponting.
Joe Root’s performance in the WTC continues to prove why he is one of the best Test cricketers of the modern era. As England chase a win at The Oval, Root’s records have already sealed his place in cricket history.
