Record-setters: Highest individual score in a Test innings from number 1 to 11
Over the years, cricket has seen many ups and downs. Many records have been made and broken over the centuries. What better a format to turn to when talking about some of the historical moments of the sport than Test cricket? Test matches have evolved over the years too, but one thing that has remained intact is the contest between the bat and the ball. So, here we will have a look at some of the best knocks from batsmen playing all the way from the opening position to the number 11 spot, managing to put up totals that are still to be surpassed.
Openers (Matthew Hayden, Australia)
While opening the batting, Matthew Hayden from Australia, recorded the highest score by an opening batsman in Test match cricket till date. The match was being played at Perth between Zimbabwe and Australia in October 2003. In the very first inning of the match, Hayden amassed a total of 380 runs single-handedly, after facing as many as 437 deliveries. The Aussies declared at 735 runs for the loss of 6 wickets. This was followed by a formidable job from the bowlers, and the Australian team went on to win the match by an innings and 175 runs.
Position 3 (Brian Lara, West Indies)
Probably one of the greatest batsmen to have ever played in world cricket, Brian Lara, against England in a Test match in Antigua, played a marathon inning and recorded the first and only 400 in Test cricket. This knock was played just after that of Hayden’s and the record for the highest score by an individual in Test cricket was transferred from one legend of cricket to the other.
In that inning, Lara scored exactly 400 runs in 582 deliveries, helping his team set a total that the Englishmen found too hard to get to. A follow-on was imposed by the West Indian captain, Lara on the England team, where they managed to escape with a draw.
Brian Lara 400 … Its been 15 years pic.twitter.com/J3sFYwmSGw
— Ali Arsalan I علی ارسلان (@arsalangorsi) April 12, 2019
Position 4 (Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka)
In July 2006, while batting in a Test match against a visiting South African team, Mahela Jayawardene, played an innings of a lifetime. Batting in the second inning of the match, Mahela came in to bat at the score of 14/2. He stitched a record-breaking partnership with Kumar Sangakkara to get the Sri Lankans to a total of 756 runs. In that inning, Mahela scored 374 runs in 572 deliveries, a score that still hasn’t been surpassed by any other batsman batting at that position.
Position 5 (Michael Clarke, Australia)
Michael Clarke’s 329-run knock against India is the current highest score ever achieved by a batsman in Test cricket, batting at number 5 for his team. In the match played in January 2012, India posted 191 runs in their first innings. What followed was an absolute annihilation of the Indian bowlers by Clarke. In his 468-ball stay on the crease, he amassed 329 runs, which helped his team get to a massive total of 659 runs. The Indian team could not reach that and the Aussies won the match by a margin of an innings and 68 runs.
Michael Clarke special 329* vs India pic.twitter.com/2SXR9EgbUO
— Rajesh Smith214 (@RajeshSmith214) April 2, 2018
Position 6 (Ben Stokes, England)
Ben Stokes, one of the best all-rounders among the current crop of players, holds the record for the highest score while batting at the number 6 spot. Stokes got to this record-breaking total in a match against South Africa in Cape Town. In what resulted to be a drawn match, Stokes, in England’s first innings, scored a total of 258 runs in 198 balls, thus smashing the fastest 250 in Test cricket.
Position 7 (Don Bradman, Australia)
Making an appearance at the number 7 spot in this list is a legendary cricketer from Australia. Sir Don Bradman in a Test match against England in Melbourne, pulled off what is a feat that no modern-day player would even think. Things did not look good in terms of the pitch at Melbourne for the batsmen, as in the first two innings of the Test, just a total of 276 runs had been scored.
Sir Don Bradman reversed the batting line-up in the second innings of Australi. He demoted himself and a couple of other batsmen right to the bottom of the line-up. He then himself scored 270 runs off 375 deliveries, guiding his team to a mammoth win against the Englishmen; by a margin of 365 runs to be precise.
Position 8 (Wasim Akram, Pakistan)
#OnThisDay1996. Wasim Akram in the first Test against Zimbabwe, in Sheikhupura smashed 12 sixes as he scored an unbeaten 257, the highest score by a Number 8 in Tests #Cricket pic.twitter.com/WAlixMGTe5
— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) October 20, 2019
In a surprising twist, Wasim Akram holds a 250+ score to his name which is still the highest total achieved by any player batting at the number 8 position. This inning was played by Akram in a Test match in October 1996 against Zimbabwe. In response to Zimbabwe’s score of 375 runs, Akram stepped up and took charge with the bat. He faced 363 deliveries through the course of his inning and scored 257 runs. Pakistan were able to convert a lost match into a draw, thanks to this inning by Akram.
Position 9 (Ian Smith, New Zealand)
February 1990 saw some of the most exciting Test match action unfold on the Kiwi soil. A touring Indian team was set to dismiss the Kiwi line-up for a petty score. This is when Ian Smith rose to the occasion and saved the day for his team. Smith, in an inning that spanned over 136 deliveries, scored a total of 173 runs, which included 23 fours and 3 sixes. Even though the match ended in a draw, it would become a memorable one.
Position 10 (Walter Read, England)
One of the greats of the game, Walter Read, in the 16th Test match played between England and Australia, played an unforgettable inning. Batting at number 10, Read scored 117 runs, while staying on the field for exactly two hours, and facing as many as 155 deliveries. The Oval witnessed history being scripted in August 1884, when Read got to this score. This innings saved the day for England, as they managed to draw the Test, after having a follow on imposed on them by the Aussies.
Position 11 (Ashton Agar, Australia)
People often don’t expect much from a number 11 batsman in terms of scoring runs. But, Ashton Agar proved everyone wrong, when he scored 98 runs off 101 deliveries in a Test match against England in Nottingham in July 2013. In what turned out to be a loss for the Australians at the end, Agar proved to the world that no matter what role a cricketer plays in the team, there is always a chance for him/her to pull off feats that were considered once impossible.
