London: In a remarkable display of batting prowess, England's Joe Root has tied with his fellow countryman Alastair Cook, achieving the feat of scoring his 33rd century, thereby securing the position of having the most Test centuries from his nation.
This achievement was realized during England's second Test against Sri Lanka at Lord's.
Root's moment of glory came in the first innings following Sri Lanka's decision to bat first. Despite starting at a challenging position of 42/2, Root managed to score an impressive 143 runs in just 206 balls, hitting 18 fours. His innings was completed at a remarkable strike rate of 69.41.
This brings Root and Cook to an equal position in terms of the highest number of centuries scored for England, each having scored 33 centuries. The record for the most Test centuries belongs to Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar with an impressive tally of 51.
Furthermore, Root has joined the ranks of English cricketing greats Michael Vaughan and Graham Gooch by having the most Test centuries at Lord's, a total of six.
Root is currently within striking distance of surpassing Cook to become the leading runscorer for England in Test matches. With a total of 199 runs, Root is only 199 runs short of Cook's record of 12,472 runs in 161 Tests. Root's impressive record includes 12,274 runs in 145 Tests, an average of 50.71, with 33 centuries and 64 fifties. His highest score stands at 254.
However, Cook has relinquished his position as the most prolific batsman on English soil to Root. In his 77 Tests played in England, Root has scored 6,630 runs at an average of 55.25, including 20 centuries and 32 fifties in 134 innings. His best score is 254.
In terms of overall Test batting performance, Cook has scored 6,568 runs in 89 matches with an average of 44.37, including 15 centuries and 32 fifties. His best score is 294.
Root now stands at the fifth position for the highest number of fifty-plus scores in Test cricket.
Tendulkar, on the other hand, holds the record for the most fifty-plus scores in Test cricket with an impressive tally of 119, including 51 centuries, the highest by any batsman in the history of the format.
In the match, Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bat first. England currently leads the three-match series 1-0.
Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Nishan Madushka (w), Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva (c), Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Priyanath Rathnayake.
England (Playing XI): Ben Duckett, Daniel Lawrence, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (w), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Olly Stone, Shoaib Bashir.
