England’s Test squad might be struggling to find form in the Ashes series against Australia, but their captain, Joe Root, has been phenomenal in the series and throughout the year.

The 30-year-old recently surpassed former South Africa skipper Graeme Smith’s record of most Test runs as captain in a calendar year, thanks to an 80-ball fifty in the first innings of the ongoing third Ashes Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, on Sunday. This was his fifth Test half-century this year, and third in the series so far.

With 1,692 runs in his 15th Test this year, Root has already moved past Smith’s 1,656 runs as the captain of the Proteas in 2008, along with Sachin Tendulkar (1,562) and Michael Clarke’s (1,595) records to claim the third spot in the all-time list.

He is now chasing Pakistan’s batting great, Mohammad Yousuf’s record of most Test runs in a calendar year that he achieved in 2006. The English skipper is currently not out on 12 at the end of Day 2 of the third Test and requires another 96 runs to get past Yousuf’s 1,788 runs.

Moreover, he looks poised to leapfrog former West Indies skipper, Sir Vivian Richards’s 45 years old record of second-most Test runs in a calendar year. The legendary batter had scored 1,710 runs in 1976.

Here is a list of players with the most Test runs in a calendar year:

*The number may vary as Joe Root is still at the crease. He will resume Day 3 with an overnight score of 12 not-out.

Source: Pro Pakistani