England’s Test captain, Joe Root, has been in sublime form over the past year. He has scored more than 1,300 runs over the past year and has his sights set on breaking the record for most Test runs in a calendar year. The record is currently held by former Pakistani middle-order batsman, Mohammad Yousuf, who scored 1,788 runs in 2006.
Yousuf’s rich vein of form in 2006 saw him score 1,788 runs at an extraordinary average of 99.33 and included nine centuries and three half-centuries and also a magnificent double-century against England at Lord’s Cricket Ground. Yousuf achieved the milestone in only 11 Test matches.
Root has already played 11 matches in the calendar year and is scheduled to play five more matches till the turn of the year. He has scored 1,398 runs at an average of 69.90, including six centuries and one half-century. He has also scored two double hundreds in the year as well, one against Sri Lanka at Galle and the other against India at Chennai.
In his last five innings in Test cricket, Root has scored three centuries and one half-century, all coming against India in the ongoing five-match Test series. Root’s exceptional form has also seen him climb up the ICC Test batsman rankings and he is now ranked as the number one Test batsman in the world, overtaking New Zealand captain, Kane Williamson at the top.
England is scheduled to play two more Test matches against India before turning their focus to the Ashes. England will tour Australia for a five-match Test series and three of the five matches are scheduled to be played in 2021, which provides Root with ample opportunities to claim the record for most runs in a calendar year.
Here are the five batsmen with the most runs in a calendar year:
| Player | Innings | Runs | Average | 100s | 50s |
| Mohammad Yousuf (2006) | 19 | 1,788 | 99.33 | 9 | 3 |
| Sir Vivian Richards (1976) | 19 | 1,710 | 90.00 | 7 | 5 |
| Graeme Smith (2008) | 25 | 1,656 | 72.00 | 6 | 6 |
| Michael Clarke (2012) | 18 | 1,595 | 106.33 | 5 | 3 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (2010) | 23 | 1,562 | 78.10 | 7 | 5 |
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