Joe Root reaches 35th Test century, joins cricket's all-time elite in Multan

On the third day of England's first Test against Pakistan in Multan, Joe Root walked to the crease early in the match and methodically built an innings that would add another chapter to his already storied Test career. Pakistan had posted 556 runs, a substantial total that would have intimidated most batters, but Root showed no hesitation. His batting was precise and controlled from the opening ball, and by the time he reached the boundary with a reverse sweep off Abrar Ahmed—a single to deep backward point—he had secured his 35th Test century, a milestone that placed him among the game's most decorated run-scorers.

The significance of that single moment extended far beyond the immediate match. In reaching 71 runs during his innings, Root became the highest run-scorer in Test history for England, surpassing Alastair Cook's previous record. More remarkably, he also became the first batter in the history of the World Test Championship—a competition that began in 2019—to accumulate 5,000 runs in the format. These were not minor achievements; they represented the convergence of sustained excellence across multiple dimensions of the game.

By reaching 35 centuries, Root had moved past four players whose names are synonymous with Test cricket greatness: Sunil Gavaskar, the revered Indian opening batter; Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lankan stylist; Brian Lara, whose record for the highest individual Test score still stands; and Younis Khan, the Pakistani batsman celebrated for his resilience in difficult conditions. Each of these four had stopped at 34 centuries. Root's achievement in Multan elevated him to a rarefied group, one occupied only by five players in the entire history of Test cricket. Sachin Tendulkar leads with 51 centuries, followed by Jacques Kallis with 45, Ricky Ponting with 41, and Kumar Sangakkara with 38. Root now sits at 35, a position that reflects not just individual brilliance but an almost singular consistency across the sport's most demanding format.

What made Root's recent form even more striking was the trajectory of his performance in 2024. He had scored five centuries in just eight Tests since returning to his preferred batting template, averaging 110 runs per Test match. Over the previous four years, he had accumulated 18 Test centuries—six in 2021, five in 2022, two in 2023, and five already in 2024. This was not a flash of form but rather a sustained period of dominance that suggested something deeper: a batsman who had solved the puzzle of Test cricket at the highest level.

The cricket community responded with genuine awe. Social media filled with observations about Root's consistency and the trajectory he was on. One analyst noted that since Sachin Tendulkar's final Test century in January 2011, Root had accumulated more centuries than any other active player—35 compared to Steve Smith's 32, Kane Williamson's 31, and Virat Kohli's 29. Another pointed out that Root was averaging 110 runs per Test since his return to form and was not yet finished in Multan. The tone across platforms was one of recognition that cricket was witnessing something rare: a batsman in his prime, playing the format he loved, against conditions that suited his game, with no apparent ceiling to what he might achieve.

Root's dominance in Pakistan conditions added another layer to the narrative. The pitches in Multan had proven conducive to his style of play, and observers half-joked that he might petition the England Cricket Board to schedule a seven-match Test series in Pakistan every year. But beneath the humor lay a serious observation: Root had found a place where his skills flourished, and he was making the most of it. With 35 centuries now in his name and the all-time record of 51 still within reach, the question was no longer whether Root would join cricket's pantheon of greats—he had already done that. The question now was how many more centuries he would add before his career ended.