Last Updated on 3 months by Charbel Coorey

Cricket News: List of England’s all-time leading run scorers in Tests | Joe Root becomes 2nd Englishman to reach 10,000 Test runs

Joe Root achieved the incredible milestone of 10,000 Test runs with his match-winning century in the fourth innings against New Zealand in the first Test of England’s 2022 season at Lord’s.

The former skipper has sparked a stunning turnaround in last couple of years and scaled a comeback after a brief lull in his career.

All-time highest run scorers: Most runs for England in Tests

Freed from the shackles of captaincy, 33-year-old Root has become the second highest run-scorer in the longest format of the game for England. Let us take a look at the other Englishmen who join him in this coveted list.

1. Alastair Cook: 12,472

At one point in time, it looked absolute certain that Alastair Cook would surpass Sachin Tendulkar to become the highest run-scorer in Test history. But the southpaw arguably retired a bit earlier than required and ended up with 12472 runs in the whites. With 33 centuries to his name, Cook shouldered the batting responsibilities remarkably well for the English Test team during his 12-year-long international career.

2. Joe Root: 12,377

Root has found form and that too in some serious style in recent years. He has dominated bowling attacks across the world and is looking better than ever with the burden of captaincy being stripped off him. He became the second Englishman to reach 12,000 Test runs after Sir Alastair Cook.

Root not only has Cook in his sights, but even Sachin Tendulkar as well for most runs in Test history. Also, Root has gone past Cook for most centuries for England with 34, achieved on September 1, 2024.

3. Graham Gooch: 8,900

Graham Gooch emerged as a pillar of the English batting setup during the 1980s. He was widely regarded as a powerful hitter in his earlier years in international cricket.

However, Gooch moulded his game to become a more diverse and holistic batsman in the future. He struck 20 Test centuries and notched 8900 runs at an average of 42.58 against some of the most iconic bowling attacks of all time. Later on, Gooch went to coach Essex and played a significant role in Alastair Cook’s development as an all-time great of the game.

4. Alec Stewart: 8,493

Alec Stewart became a prominent batsman during an age when wicketkeepers weren’t really considered to be reliable with the willow. Stewart and then Adam Gilchrist gave rise to that transformation as the former bagged 8493 runs at an average of 39.54 in 133 Tests.

Stewart was a player who relied more on his touch and ability to carve out gaps on the field. He was a sensible and dependable figure in the batting line-up and his longevity ensured that he brought the curtains down in his career as arguably England’s best-ever wicketkeeper-batsman.

5. David Gower: 8,231

David Gower was certainly one of the most dexterous and skilful batsmen to have played for England. The left-hander had such an innate grace embedded in his stroke-play that it delighted the audience irrespective of their allegiance. He brought composure and consistency to the English batting line-up as Gower scored 8231 runs at an average of 44.25 with 18 centuries in 117 Test matches.