Joe Root

Joseph Edward Root (born 30 December 1990) is an English international cricketer who plays for England in Tests and ODIs. He is the current captain of the Test team, reappointed in 2026 having previously held the role from 2017 to 2022. He plays for Yorkshire in English domestic cricket. Root is currently the leading run-scorer among active batsmen, the second highest run-scorer of all time in Test cricket and the highest run scorer for England. Root is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketers of his era and among the finest England has produced. He was part of the England team that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup, where he top scored for England. As of March 2026, he has topped the ICC rankings for Test batsmen on ten occasions.

Root made his Test debut in 2012, his ODI debut in 2013 and played for the England Twenty20 International team between 2012 and 2019. He captained England's Test team between February 2017 and April 2022, and holds the records for most Test matches (65), wins (28) as England captain. On the occasion of England's 1,000th Test in 2018, Root was named in the country's greatest all-time Test XI by the England and Wales Cricket Board. He was named both the ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year and the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World for 2021.

A right-handed batsman, Root originally played as an opener but has played the majority of his cricket for England in the middle order. He is both England's highest run-scorer in Tests and in ODIs. He holds the record for both most Test (41) and most ODI (20) centuries for England. In June 2022, he became the second batsman for England, and fourteenth overall, to score 10,000 Test runs.

Along with Harry Brook, he holds the world record for highest fourth-wicket stand (and fourth highest overall) in Tests (454), and with James Anderson the highest tenth-wicket partnership (198). He is also England's leading run scorer in the ICC World Cup and the only English player to score over 1000 runs in the competition. Root also bowls occasional off spin, and regularly fields at first slip, holding the record for most Test catches by an outfield player. As of July 2026, Root is one of only 2 players, along with AB de Villiers, to have a career batting average of 50+ in both Tests and ODI's in the history of international cricket.