Joe Root moved up to third on the all-time Test run-scorers list as he and Ollie Pope helped England close in on India’s first-innings score at Emirates Old Trafford.
Root overtook former India batter Rahul Dravid by reaching 30 on the third morning of the fourth Rothesay Test then leapfrogged ex-South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis by adding one extra run.
He went to lunch on 63 not out – needing another 57 to overhaul former Australia captain Ricky Ponting’s tally of 13,378 runs, although the great Sachin Tendulkar’s record 15,921 is some way off.
No doubt uppermost in the 34-year-old’s mind is his and Pope’s unbroken 135-run stand as England ended a wicketless session on 332 for two, leaving the hosts within 26 of India’s 358 all out.
After a quiet couple of Tests, Pope was put down on 48 by substitute wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel standing up to the stumps in his unbeaten 70, to build on the foundations laid by Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett.
Root was given a gift from Bumrah’s first ball and he cashed in off his pads for four after England resumed on 225 for two, although India were able to ruffle his and Pope’s feathers early on.
Root should have been run out on 22 but Ravindra Jadeja was off target with his throw, reprieving the Yorkshireman after a mid-pitch mix-up with Pope, who then got a leading edge off Bumrah which landed safe.
The odd delivery from Mohammed Siraj scuttled along the floor to suggest signs of unevenness before Root climbed above Dravid and Kallis with singles into the offside in successive overs.
Skipping up to third on the all-time list...
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 25, 2025
Just GOAT things 🐐 pic.twitter.com/RanX6sluuO
Pope and Root took advantage of the singles on offer, with Siraj’s unnecessary throw getting through Jurel and going to the boundary for overthrows summing up India’s fruitless morning.
Jurel was then unable to cling on to a very difficult chance when Anshul Kamboj drew Pope’s under-edge, having moved directly behind the stumps to stop England’s number three advancing down the track.
Pope scampered through for a single to bring up his fifty moments later, while Root got to his half-century after Washington Sundar’s off-spin was belatedly introduced in the 69th over.
Root’s 104th score of 50 or more took him above Kallis and Ponting, leaving only Tendulkar, with 119, ahead of him.
