Australian star batter Marnus Labuschagne has added another feather to his cap, becoming the second batter in history after Joe Root to score 4000 runs in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC).
Marnus Labuschagne reached the milestone in Australia’s testy first innings by surpassing the 14-run mark and in doing so, the 29-year-old joined England’s Joe Root, the only other player to achieve the feat, in an exclusive WTC club.
Root, who currently leads the ICC Test batting rankings, was the first to cross the 4000-run mark and remains the highest scorer in the competition with an astounding 5543 runs in 64 matches after another prolific year.
Top Run-Scorers in ICC World Test Championship:
| Rank | Player | Country | Period | Matches | Innings | Not Outs | Runs | High Score | Average | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s | 0’s | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joe Root | ENG | 2019-2024 | 64 | 117 | 10 | 5543 | 262 | 51.80 | 60.30 | 18 | 21 | 8 | 571 | 17 |
| 2 | Marnus Labuschagne | AUS | 2019-2024 | 49* | 88 | 7 | 4058 | 215 | 50.09 | 52.23 | 11 | 21 | 3 | 462 | 11 |
| 3 | Steven Smith | AUS | 2019-2024 | 49* | 84 | 10 | 3678 | 211 | 49.70 | 50.33 | 10 | 18 | 7 | 397 | 19 |
| 4 | Ben Stokes | ENG | 2019-2024 | 53 | 96 | 7 | 3312 | 176 | 37.21 | 61.48 | 7 | 17 | 3 | 341 | 83 |
| 5 | Travis Head | AUS | 2019-2024 | 45* | 73 | 4 | 2919 | 175 | 42.30 | 72.16 | 8 | 12 | 6 | 361 | 30 |
| 6 | Kane Williamson | NZ | 2019-2024 | 28 | 50 | 4 | 2822 | 251 | 61.34 | 52.93 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 334 | 13 |
| 7 | Usman Tariq Khawaja | AUS | 2019-2024 | 36* | 67 | 7 | 2806 | 195* | 46.76 | 46.59 | 7 | 13 | 4 | 312 | 11 |
| 8 | Babar Azam | PAK | 2019-2024 | 33* | 58 | 4 | 2760 | 196 | 51.11 | 55.79 | 8 | 15 | 1 | 321 | 16 |
| 9 | Zak Crawley | ENG | 2020-2024 | 47 | 86 | 1 | 2751 | 267 | 32.36 | 65.57 | 4 | 15 | 8 | 380 | 11 |
| 10 | Rohit Sharma | IND | 2019-2024 | 40* | 67 | 3 | 2704 | 212 | 42.25 | 58.62 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 322 | 56 |
For Pakistan, skipper Babar Azam leads the charts with 2760 runs in 32 WTC matches. With a stellar average of 51.11, including eight centuries and 15 half-centuries, Babar remains a dominant force in Test cricket.
Labuschagne’s milestone is particularly significant as he entered the Border-Gavaskar Trophy under pressure due to a lean patch. However, the right-hander has shown glimpses of a return to form, scoring two half-centuries in six innings during the ongoing series against India.
On the first day of the fourth test, Labuschagne played a crucial role in steadying Australia’s innings after debutant opener Sam Konstas impressed with a 60-run knock before falling to Ravindra Jadeja. Labuschagne first partnered with Usman Khawaja (57) in a 65-run stand before building an unbroken 80-plus-run partnership with Steve Smith. His composed innings of 72 helped Australia post 311/6 after the day’s play.
Stay Connected with ProPakistani
Get the latest sports news, match updates, and player stories wherever you prefer.
Add ProPakistani to Preferred Sources and see more of our stories in Google Search and Top Stories.
