England batters with most 50+ scores in 4th innings
Joe Root starred for Team England in the final innings of the first Test against Sri Lanka at Old Trafford, Manchester. He scored an unbeaten 62 off 128 balls as England (205/5) crossed the line. Notably, England were 56/2 when Root came in and were 70/3 soon thereafter. Here we look at the England batters with the most 50-plus scores in the fourth innings.
Joe Root - 10
As per ESPNcricinfo, the Manchester game saw Root become the fourth England batter to register 10 50-plus Test scores in the fourth innings. He has now raced to 1,589 runs across 47 innings in this regard at a decent average of 41.81. The tally includes eight fifties besides a couple of tons. Root has bagged two ducks in the final innings.
Geoffrey Boycott - 10
The legendary Geoffrey Boycott was among the rare breed of batters who enjoyed operating in the final innings. Like Root, he also clobbered 10 fifty-plus scores while chasing targets. He finished with 1,234 runs across 34 innings with the help of three tons and seven fifties. His average of 58.76 is still the best among batters with 1,000-plus runs in the fourth innings.
Alastair Cook - 11
The talismanic Alastair Cook was bound to be on this list. He led many run chases for England, having registered 11 50-plus scores in the final innings. The tally includes nine fifties and a couple of centuries. Cook's tally of 1,611 runs across 53 innings is the most for any England batter in run chases (Tests). However, his average is a modest 35.80.
Michael Atherton - 11
Former England captain Michael Atherton also did a decent job while tackling the red cherry in the fourth innings. He crossed the 50-run barrier 11 times across 39 innings in run chases. This includes nine fifties and a couple of hundreds. His 185* in the 1995 Johannesburg Test against South Africa is the second-highest fourth-innings score for an England batter.
