Photo Credit: SA20 League
Paarl Royals superstar Joe Root has been hailed as “England’s greatest-ever batter” after the former captain surpassed Alastair Cook as his country’s leading run-scorer in Test cricket.
Root is in an elite bracket as a member of the modern game’s “Big Four” batsmen alongside Australia’s Steve Smith, India’s Virat Kohli and Durban’s Super Giants New Zealand star Kane Williamson.
Root overtook Cook’s 12 472 runs during his mammoth 262 (375 balls, 17×4) in the first Test against Pakistan in Multan. He also shared a record 454-run partnership with Harry Brook, who also struck a career-best 317.
“He’s obviously one of the best players, and England’s greatest-ever batter,” Brook said.
“What comforts you the most when you’re out there is watching how easy he makes it look, and how hard it is for the bowlers to get him out. He’s playing the ball so late, you bowl your best ball, and he’s scoring runs off it.”
Root has been phenomenal in 2024, leading the global list of run-scorers in Test cricket with 1248 runs, which includes five centuries, in 21 innings this year.
The 33-year-old needs a further 624 runs to overtake Rahul Dravid into fourth place on the all-time Test run scorers list. Indian maestro Sachin Tendulkar tops the charts with 15 921 runs.
Paarl Royals fans’ first opportunity to see the English run-machine in action in the Betway SA20 will be at Boland Park on Saturday, 11 January when the Royals host the defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
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Name of Author: SA20 League
SA20, officially known as the Betway SA20 for sponsorship reasons, is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament in South Africa organized by Cricket South Africa (CSA). First held in the 2023 season, the league features six city-based teams. Sunrisers Eastern Cape won the first two editions of the tournament.
