Record alert: 5 batsmen to score most first-class runs without playing a Test

Cricket is a game of talent and skills. However, it is not all that you need to have a successful career. To flourish in the field of cricket, a player also needs a certain amount of luck as it plays a vital role in deciding whether a cricketer will get a call for the national team or not. The domestic tournaments act as a harbinger of the arrival of prospective senior cricketers.

But there have been many cricketers in the history of the game who, despite scoring tons of runs in the domestic circuit, didn’t get their debut cap. Nonetheless, such players continued playing for the sheer love of the game. In this article, let’s flip the pages and take a look at 5 unlucky cricketers who had the most first-class runs to their name but didn’t get the elusive Test cap.

5. PA Perrin

Percival Albert Perrin, also known as either “Percy” or “Peter”, played for Essex as a right-handed middle-order batsman for more than thirty years from 1896. During his stint in the domestic circuit, Peter featured in 538 matches scoring 29,709 runs at an average of 35.92. His highest score in the first-class circuit was 343* and the cricketer ended his career with 66 centuries.

4. KG Suttle

Kenneth George Suttle was a left-handed English batsman and a slow left-arm orthodox bowler. In 612 first-class games from 1949 to 1971, Ken scored 30,225 runs at an average of 31.09. He also contributed significantly with the ball, claiming 266 wickets including a five-wicket haul. The left-hander smashed 49 centuries in his career.

3. GL Berry

George Leslie Berry is another England cricketer to feature in this list. The Surrey-born played for Leicestershire County Cricket Club from 1924 to 1951. George played 609 domestic games garnering 30,225 runs including 45 centuries with 232 being his highest score. Throughout his career, the right-hander maintained an average of over 31.

2. John George Langridge

England cricketer John George Langridge played cricket for Sussex County Club and represented his team in 574 First-class fixtures aggregating 34,378 runs at an average of 37.44. Langridge also has as many as 76 centuries to his name with 250* being his highest score. Apart from being an exceptional batsman, John also possessed acrobatic fielding skills. Langridge took 784 catches, mostly at slip, including 69 in his last season at the age of 45.

1. Alan Jones

England’s Alan Jones can be termed as one of the unluckiest cricketers as he holds the record for scoring the most runs in first-class cricket without playing in an official Test match. The Welsh cricketer featured in 645 first-class games from 1957 to 1983, scoring 36,049 runs at an average of 32.89. In his career, the batsman smashed 56 tons – 204* being his highest score. Jones had played the first Test of England’s series against a Rest of the World XI in 1970, matches which originally carried Test status only to be subsequently downgraded by the ICC in 1972.

Note: In June 2020, Jones was finally awarded the England Test cap, 50 years since his appearance against the Rest of the World XI.