Former England captain Joe Root has jumped a spot in the list of most catches in Test cricket by a specialist fielder. Root, 32, replaced his former captain Alastair Cook to occupy the sixth position in the below mentioned elite list.
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It all happened on the fourth day of the ongoing second Ashes 2023 Test against Australia at Lord’s. Stationed at short leg, an unusual fielding position for a cricketer playing his 132nd Test, Root grabbed an absolute thriller of a catch to surpass Cook.
With English fast bowlers troubling the Australian batters with a barrage of short deliveries on the penultimate day of the match, Root’s quick reflexes allowed veteran pacer Stuart Broad to pick his second wicket of the day.
Directed perfectly into Travis Head‘s (7) body, Broad’s short ball forced the left-handed batter to play the ball towards Root. With the ball some distance away from him, an airborne Root managed to cling on to it with his left hand.
A list dominated one-sided by batters, it comprises some absolute greats of the sport. Root, who is already part of some batting record lists in cricket, is making his way into fielding records as well now.
One of the two Englishmen in the list, Root’s next target isn’t too far away from him. All he needs are six more catches in this format to outdo former Australia batter Mark Waugh from the fifth position. Assuming that he does the same in the near future, Root will be part of a Top Five which also consists legends such as Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, Mahela Jayawardene and Rahul Dravid.
Most Catches In Test Cricket By A Specialist Fielder (Updated On July 28, 2023)
| Player | Team | Span | Matches | Innings | Catches | Maximum |
| Rahul Dravid | India / ICC | 1996-2012 | 164 | 301 | 210 | 3 |
| Mahela Jayawardene | Sri Lanka | 1997-2014 | 149 | 270 | 205 | 4 |
| Jacques Kallis | South Africa / ICC | 1995-2013 | 166 | 315 | 200 | 4 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 1995-2012 | 168 | 328 | 196 | 3 |
| Joe Root | England | 2012-present | 135 | 255 | 182 | 4 |
| Mark Waugh | Australia | 1991-2002 | 128 | 245 | 181 | 4 |
| Alastair Cook | England | 2006-2018 | 161 | 300 | 175 | 3 |
| Stephen Fleming | New Zealand | 1994-2008 | 111 | 199 | 171 | 5 |
| Graeme Smith | South Africa / ICC | 2002-2014 | 117 | 225 | 169 | 5 |
| Brian Lara | West Indies | 1990-2006 | 131 | 241 | 164 | 4 |
