Top 5 highest batting ratings achieved in Test Cricket
Test Cricket has always been regarded as the purest form of the game. Despite the popularity and brand value of T20 cricket, it is widely believed that Test Cricket still has its place in World Cricket. For a number of cricket lovers, there is nothing better than witnessing an engrossing session of a Test match of an equal battle between bat and ball.
Test Cricket, since its inception in 1877, has seen innumerable legendary players who have possessed tremendous skill and performed consistently. In 1987, the ICC Test Rankings were introduced to act as a metric to gauge the performances of cricketers. Let us have a look at the Top 5 Test batting ratings of all time.
5. Ricky Ponting (942)
Ricky Ponting, not just one of the most successful batsmen, but also captains of all time topped the batting charts in Tests with 942 points in the rankings in 2006 where he scored 1333 runs in 10 matches with 7 100s. He had also scored 576 runs in the Ashes, where he led the Australian team to 5-0 whitewash over England and was declared player of the series. Ponting scored 13378 runs in his Test career which spanned 17 years at an average of 51.9 which also included 41 100s, the second-highest till date. There have hardly been as charismatic and consistent performers in Test cricket as Ricky Ponting.
4. Sir Jack Hobbs (942)
Sir Jack Hobbs, ties with Ponting at 942 points. The greatest first-class cricketer ever had a wonderful international career as well which spanned over two decades. While in first-class cricket he scored an unbelievable 61760 runs scoring 199 centuries, in Tests he played 61 matches scoring 5410 runs at an average of 56.9 with 15 tons. His ratings peaked to 942 when he scored back to back centuries against England in the 1911-1912 Ashes where Australia also won 4-1. Sir Jack Hobbs was the epitome of consistency.
3. Sir Leonard Hutton (945)
Sir Leonard Hutton amassed 6971 runs in the 79 matches he played with 19 tons and a high score of 364 which stayed the highest score in Test cricket for two decades. Hutton interestingly achieved the highest rating of 945 in the ICC rankings towards the end of his career after a fantastic performance against Australia in the 1954-1955 Ashes. Wisden Cricket’s Almanack, The Bible of cricket described him as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket, and we can say that it wasn’t without reason.
2. Steve Smith (947)
The greatest Test batsman of this generation, Steve Smith’s performance has been nothing short of remarkable. In an era dominated by short-form cricket, he has shown unwavering consistency and form in Test cricket. The fact that Smith started out as a wrist spin bowler and today is one of the greatest Test batsmen is a testimony to how he’s transformed himself. Despite his unorthodox technique, Smith has been able to accumulate 7227 runs in 73 games with 26 tons and a meteoric average of 62.8, miles ahead of any other current batsman. Smith topped the batting charts after a golden run 2017, where he scored 1305 runs in 11 Tests at 76.76 which included a mammoth Ashes series where he amassed 687 runs in 7 innings at an average of 137.40.
1. Don Bradman (961)
The greatest of all time, Sir Donald Bradman popularly called ‘The Don’ has been a role model to innumerable players. Bradman played just 52 games, but scored 6996 runs with 29 100s, at a famously unfathomable average of 99.94, which is regarded as one of the greatest achievements across sports. In a career which went on for 20 years, Bradman achieved the legendary 961 points in a Test series against India in 1948 where he piled up 715 runs in 5 Tests. The threshold of the legendary performance by Bradman is yet to be surpassed in the last 7 decades, and it is unlikely it ever will. Amongst the plethora of records, this record of Bradman is surely right up there amongst his greatest achievements.
