Joe Root batted his way into the record books on Wednesday when the Yorkshireman became England’s all-time leading Test runscorer.
Root began day three of the first Test against Pakistan in Multan on 32 runs, needing another 39 runs to break Sir Alastair Cook’s record, which he did in style.
Root was eventually out for a career best 262 on day four, earning his 35th Test century in the process as England went past 800 runs in reply to the hosts’ 556. The 33-year-old is a keen football fan, so who does he support?
Who does Joe Root support?
Root was born in Sheffield on December 30, 1990 and as a Steel City native, he has remained loyal to his, er, roots.
The former England skipper is a fully paid-up Sheffield United fan and will often take to social media to express his support for the Blades.
‘Boys day out at lan today!’, he posted on Instagram last month, alongside a picture of him and his son at Bramall Lane. ‘So much fun!’
Root’s Blades fandom puts him at odds to a number of his England teammates, with Jonny Bairstow a Leeds United supporter after having played alongside the likes of Danny Rose and Fabian Delph at the club’s academy before he focused on cricket.
Retired bowler James Armstrong is a Burnley fan, adding some Roses rivalry back in the day, while one of Root’s predecessors as England captain Michael Vaughan is a Sheffield Wednesday fan.
Root’s former England teammate Stuart Broad is a Nottingham Forest fan, with the pair of them watching their respective teams in action during the Championship play-off semi-final in 2022, when Root almost got into a spot of bother.
“Just after half-time, 46th minute, conceding, and (Joe Root) punched me in the leg because I told him ‘you’re not celebrating sat next to me’,” Broad told Sky Sports after the game. “He punched me in the leg with celebration when it went in.”
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Broad had the last laugh that day, as Forest would win on a penalty shootout to reach the play-off final at Wembley.
“Rooty actually went and stood in the stairwell because he didn’t want to be near me. He needed to have a bit of quiet time, I think,” Broad added.
Next up for Root’s Sheffield United is a trip to Elland Road to face Leeds on Friday, October 18.
