He will go miles past my record: Alastair Cook lauds Joe Root after he goes past 10,000 runs in Test cricket

Joe Root has been enjoying a purple patch in Test cricket over the last couple of years. Despite being sacked as captain of the England Test team, Root's performances with the willow have remained unaffected in the longest format. Root slammed a match-winning unbeaten century in the first Test against New Zealand at Lord's on Sunday (June 05) to help the hosts win the game by five wickets and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

It was a brilliant knock from Root under pressure and helped England chase down the target of 277 runs comfortably at the end. Asked to chase 277 runs in their 2nd innings, England got off to a shaky start as the Kiwis reduced them to 69/4 inside 20 overs on Day 3.

However, Root combined with new captain Ben Stokes to steady the ship for the hosts and add a 90-run stand for the fifth wicket. Stokes scored a crucial 54 off 110 balls taking England closer to a win at Lord's. However, it still was not entirely in control of the hosts with New Zealand bowlers hoping to wreak havoc on Day 4.

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Nonetheless, Root stood tall at the end and notched up a stunning 4th-innings century to take his team over the line comfortably. In the process, he also became only the second English batter to go past the 10,000 run-mark in Test cricket after the great Alastair Cook. Root also equalled Cook's record for being the youngest to achieve the feat.

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Cook lauded Root for his tremendous achievement and said the 31-year-old is the most complete England batter he has seen. The former England skipper also backed Root to break his record and become England's all-time highest run-getter in Tests in the future. Cook is currently England's leading run-getter in the whites with 12472 runs in 161 matches.

"He is a pleasure to watch, the most complete England batsman I have seen. The person who could play the most incredible innings was Kevin Pietersen, but for the most complete batsmen in all three forms, it's Root. His consistency is incredible. He was a very good player of spin, as good as anyone," Cook said while speaking about Root's batting on BBC.

"He was ready to play international cricket. You knew he could handle the occasion. Barring injury, he'll go miles past my record," he added.

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Cook, who decided to quit cricket at the age of 33, was once touted to break the legendary Sachin Tendulkar's record for most runs in Test history. However, the former England captain decided to part ways from the game at an early age due to mental strain and the toll on his body from the pressure of scoring runs consistently. However, he believes Root might not face such issues and can certainly have a longer career.

"I would never have said I would finish at 33, but the time felt right for me. The mental strain I felt to score runs took a toll on me. I'm not saying it's easy for him, but he doesn't seem to have that problem," said Cook, who is 37 now.

"He is so hard to tie down. I had to grind my way to 30, it always took me what felt like two hours. Because Joe has got so many low-risk scoring options, pretty much through 360 degrees, he will often get to 30 off 40 balls," he added.