England captain Alastair Cook has become the youngest player to score 10,000 Test runs.
Aged 31, five months and five days, he achieved the landmark by reaching five on the fourth day of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Chester-le-Street.
He brought up the milestone with a leg-side clip for four off Nuwan Pradeep and saluted the England balcony.
"It's a very special moment for me," Cook said. "You forget about all the hard times you have as a cricketer."
He beat India legend Sachin Tendulkar's record of 31 years, 10 months and 20 days, which has stood since 2005.
Cook went on to make 47 not out as England won the Test by nine wickets.
| Youngest players to 10,000 Test runs | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player | Age | Date achieved |
| Alastair Cook (England) | 31 years, 5 months, 5 days | 30 May 2016 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (India) | 31 years, 10 months, 20 days | 16 March 2005 |
| Jacques Kallis (South Africa) | 33 years, 4 months, 11 days | 27 Feb 2009 |
| Ricky Ponting (Australia) | 33 years, 5 months, 11 days | 30 May 2008 |
| Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka) | 34 years, 6 months, 29 days | 26 Dec 2011 |
"It's certainly driven me personally," the Essex batsman said. "To score 10,000 runs was one of those goals.
"It's those seven o'clock nets with Goochy [his mentor Graham Gooch], the hard yards away from today that you put in to get here."
England coach Trevor Bayliss praised Cook as a "phenomenal batsman".
England's leading Test run-scorer, Cook is the 12th player in history to 10,000 runs, and only the second opener.
Brian Lara, Kumar Sangakkara, Ricky Ponting, Rahul Dravid, Mahela Jayawardene, Sunil Gavaskar, Jacques Kallis, Allan Border, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Steve Waugh are the other batsmen to reach the milestone.
Cook surpassed Gooch's tally of 8,900 Test runs at Headingley last May to become England's leading run-scorer.
He was playing the 128th Test of a glittering career which has seen him score 28 Test hundreds - also a record for an Englishman.
Cook made a century on debut against India in 2006, but was ruled out of the next match because of illness. He has not missed a Test since.
Appointed captain in 2012 following Andrew Strauss' retirement, Cook led England to Ashes series wins over Australia in 2013 and 2015.
'England's rock for a decade'
Former England captain and Alastair Cook's mentor Graham Gooch on BBC Test Match Special: "Anyone who interrupts my apple pie and custard on a Monday afternoon has to have done something special.
"He has been a fantastic servant to England and cricket in general, a great ambassador. To average 1,000 Test runs a year since debut is a phenomenal achievement. He's been the rock of the England batting for a decade and I hope he goes on for a while."
Former England batsman Geoffrey Boycott on TMS: "Cook has been a rock up front. His assets are he's got patience, determination, concentration. He's a bloody-minded, tough so-and-so. He's clever enough to know you can't go flashing the ball all over the park like a middle-order player to an old ball."
No comments:
Post a Comment