After scoring a century with the bat at Lord’s Test, England’s star Joe Root also broke a catching record.
Ben Stokes’ delivery brushed the bat of batsman Karun Nair and headed towards the wicketkeeper. From first slip, Root reacted lightning-fast, diving to his left and securing the ball with one hand in a spectacular catch. With this brilliant catch, Root set a new record as England’s most successful Test batsman.
Root had previously reached the record for the most catches by a non-wicketkeeper in Test cricket during the Edgbaston Test against India. On the second day of the Lord’s Test, he surpassed Indian great Rahul Dravid to reach new heights.
With Karun’s wicket, Root’s tally now stands at 211 catches in 156 Tests. Dravid ended his career with 210 catches in 164 Tests.
Only three players have taken more than 200 catches: Mahela Jayawardene with 205 catches in 149 Tests, Jacques Kallis with 200 in 166 Tests, and Steven Smith with 200 in 118 Tests.
Jayawardene and Kallis retired long ago, so the race now is really between Root and Smith.
Before setting the catching record on this day, Root also marked his 37th Test century in his 156th match, adding more memorable pages to the record books.
