England break astonishing record that stood for 67 years as exhausted Joe Root misses family occasion to make history and Harry Brook hits treble ton
Joe Root and Harry Brook set a new record for the highest Test partnership in England history on an astonishing day in Pakistan.
Brook hit a triple century and Root made a double ton as records tumbled in the first Test in Multan.
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Together, they surpassed the nation's previous record partnership of 409 runs - set by Colin May and Peter Cowdry against the West Indies in 1957.
When Root eventually fell for 262, it brought an end to a partnership of 454 - the fourth-highest in the history of Test cricket.
Meanwhile, Brook went beyond his teammate before eventually being dismissed for 317 from just 332 balls.
It marked the first triple hundred scored by an Englishman since 1995 and the fifth-highest individual score in history.
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Root missed his brother Billy's wedding back home in Yorkshire to take part in the match.
The 33-year-old became England's leading Test run scorer of all-time on Wednesday, overtaking Sir Alastair Cook, who recorded 12,472 runs during his illustrious career.
On Thursday, Root moved past his own record Test score of 254 - also scored against Pakistan - at Old Trafford in 2016.
After spending so many hours in 36-degree heat, the former England captain was seen drying his soaking wet kit near the boundary ropes.
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Root came to the crease in just the ninth ball of the innings after Ben Duckett couldn't open due to a thumb injury.
Ollie Pope was dismissed for nothing, bringing the former captain to the crease, and he survived for 375 balls, spending a total of 601 minutes at the crease.
If you take into account Pakistan's innings, Root was only off the field for eight balls, and as he departed, every Pakistan player came up to shake his hand after he struggled to walk off.
Highest Test partnerships (all-time)
- Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene - Sri Lanka vs South Africa - July 2006 - 624 runs
- Roshan Mahanam and Sanath Jayasuriya - Sri Lanka vs India - August 1997 - 576
- Andrew Jones and Martin Crowe - New Zealand vs Sri Lanka - January 1991 - 467
- Joe Root and Harry Brook - England vs Pakistan - October 2024 - 454
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High scores for England in Tests
- Leonard Hutton - 364 runs - England vs Australia - August 1938
- Wally Hammond - 336 runs - New Zealand vs England - August 1933
- Graham Gooch - 333 runs - England vs India - July 1990
- Andy Sandham - 325 runs - West Indies vs England - April 1930
- Harry Brook - 317 runs - Pakistan vs England - October 2024
Despite his heroics alongside Brook, the first Test in Multan looks destined to end in a draw after Pakistan hit 556 in their first innings.
England ended up passing 800 before losing Jaime Smith and Gus Atkinson.
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Brydon Carse and Chris Woakes then smashed a few more runs, and England eventually declared on 823/7 with a lead of 267.
This is England's third-highest score in Test history and their biggest since the 1930s.
England's innings has seen record after record fall, and David 'Bumble' Lloyd had plenty of praise for both Root and Brook.
Speaking to talkSPORT Breakfast, he said: "What a magnificent innings from Root - fabulous.
"The thing about Harry Brook is he's from Yorkshire as well, so Yorkshire is rejoicing that these two are at the crease.
"He's much younger than Joe Root, and Joe Root said batting with Harry Brook is like batting with Kevin Pietersen - there is no greater praise than that."
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