Decoding Joe Root's Test captaincy in numbers
Joe Root has stepped down as the captain of the England cricket team in Tests. Root, 31, announced his decision on Friday (April 15). Under Root, England lost their last Test series to West Indies by 1-0. Prior to that, they had suffered a forgettable 4-0 defeat in the Ashes series down under. Here we decode Root's numbers as a captain in Tests.
Root achieved these numbers as Test captain for England
Root captained the England cricket team in 64 Tests. This is the most matches by an English cricketer as a captain in whites. Root registered most wins (27) and most losses (26) as England's Test captain. He piled the most number of runs (5,295) and struck most fifties (26) and hundreds (14). He claimed 87 catches, most by an English captain in Tests.
Why does this story matter?
Joe Root led England for a period of five years, taking on the baton from Alastair Cook in August 2017. England did well on the tours to SL (2018, 2021) and most notably SA (2019-20). However, the Three Lions underwent an abysmal run in the last 17 Tests. They could muster just one win, which made Root's position shaky as a captain.
Root scored 1,025 runs as a captain in The Ashes
Root ranks fourth among English captains with the most runs in Ashes history. The right-handed batter has hoarded 1,025 runs in 15 Tests at 36.60. He pummeled 12 fifties. He ranks behind Archie MacLaren (1,156), David Gower (1,115), and Peter May (1,091). He has surpassed English greats, namely Michael Atherton (964), Graham Gooch (908), and Alastair Cook (853) in this regard.
Root's captaincy numbers in The Ashes
Root never won an Ashes series as a captain. England lost the 2017-18 Ashes series down under by 4-0. Root piled up 378 runs at 47.25. England leveled the series 2-2 in the 2019 Ashes. Root amassed 325 runs at 32.50. He had a similar run in England's 4-0 drubbing during the 2021-22 Ashes series Down Under. He scored only 322 runs at 32.20.
Root's colossal tally in ICC World Test Championship 2021-23
The Englishman has smashed the most number of runs in the ongoing WTC 2021-23. Root (1,175) is heads and shoulders above Australia's Usman Khawaja (751) who occupies the second spot. Root has hammered four fifties and five hundreds (most tons by a player in WTC 2021-23). Notably, Root was the second-highest run-scorer in WTC 2019-21 (1,660). He averaged 47.42 (three hundreds, eight fifties).
Fifth-highest scorer as a captain in Tests
Root ranks fifth in the list of leading run-getters as a captain in Tests (5,295). He ranks behind Graeme Smith (8,659), Allan Border (6,623), Ricky Ponting (6,542), and Virat Kohli (5,864) in this regard. He averaged 46.44 across 64 Tests. Notably, Root's 228 versus SL in Galle is the highest score by an English batter in Sri Lanka.
Root slammed 1,708 Test runs in 2021
Root started the year 2021 with a mind-boggling 228 against SL. He eventually hammered 1,708 runs in 15 Tests at 61.00. He pinned down six hundreds and four fifties. As per ESPNCricinfo, those 1,708 runs were the most by an English cricketer and third-most by any player in a calendar year. He was named the ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year in 2021.
A look at Root's numbers in Tests
Root has made 117 appearances, scoring 9,889 runs at 49.20. He has clobbered 25 hundreds and 53 fifties. Root has notched five double hundreds. At home, Root has struck 5,009 runs at 52.18. Away from home, he has 4,593 runs. At neutral venues, he has scored 287 runs. He registered his highest total in Tests (254) against Pakistan at Old Trafford in 2016.
Root has seven Player of the Match awards as captain
As a captain, Root won his first Player of the Match title against SL in 2018. He had struck a match-winning 124 in Pallekele. He then whacked a 226 versus New Zealand at Seddon Park in 2019. That was his second title. Notably, he garnered four Player of the Match awards in 2021. Overall, he has 12 Player of the Match titles to show.
How did Root fare in his final series as captain?
Root finished as the second-highest run-scorer in the three-match Test series against WI. He got 289 runs across six innings at 48.17. While he dispatched laud-worthy numbers in the first two Tests, he couldn't extend the run for the series decider in Grenada. His scores in the series read 13, 109, 153, 9, 0, and 5. It was only his 11th duck in Tests.
