test cricket history

List of Test cricket records

Donald Bradman, holder of several Test batting records including highest batting average.

Sachin Tendulkar is the leading run-scorer and century maker in Test cricket.

Muttiah Muralitharan is the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.

Test cricket refers to the form of the sport played by international teams who are Full Members of the International Cricket Council (ICC).^[1] Test matches differ from One Day Internationals in that the former consist of two innings per team, and innings are not restricted in terms of overs.^[2] Test cricket is a subset of first-class cricket, so statistics and records set in Test matches also count toward first-class records. The duration of Tests, currently limited to five days, has varied through Test history, ranging from three days to timeless matches.^[3][4] The first recognised Test match was played between England and Australia in March 1877;^[5] since then there have been nearly 2,000 Tests played by 11 teams. The frequency of Tests has steadily increased partly because of the rise in the number of Test-playing countries, as well as cricket boards' looking to maximise revenue.^[6]
Cricket is, by its nature, capable of generating large numbers of records and statistics.^[7] This list details the most significant team and individual records in Test cricket.
The most successful team in Test cricket, in terms of both wins and win percentage, is Australia, having won 340 of their 723 Tests (47.02). Barring the ICC World XI, a rest of world team which played a single Test against Australia in 2005, the least successful team are Bangladesh who have struggled since their introduction to Test cricket in 2000, leading some to question their Test status.^[8][9][10]
Australian Donald Bradman, widely considered the greatest batsman of all time,^[11][12] holds several personal and partnership records. He scored the most runs in a series, has the most double centuries and was a part of the record fifth and sixth wicket partnerships. His most significant record is his batting average of 99.94, considered one of cricket's most famous statistics,^[13][14] it stands nearly 40 runs higher than any other batsman's average.
In 1956, England spin bowler Jim Laker took 19 wickets for 90 runs (19-90) which set not only the Test record for best match figures but also the first-class one.^[15] Laker's second innings analysis of 10-53 was the first occasion of a bowler taking all ten wickets in a Test match innings and they remain the best innings figures. Indian Leg-spinner Anil Kumble is the only other bowler to have taken 10 wickets in an innings, claiming 10-74 against Pakistan in 1999.^[16] West Indies batsman Brian Lara is the holder of the highest individual score in Test cricket, he scored 400 not out against England in 2004 to surpass the innings of 380 by Matthew Hayden six months earlier. Lara had held the record before Hayden, with a score of 375 against England 10 years earlier.^[17]
The trend of countries to increase the number in Test matches they play means that the aggregate lists are dominated by modern players with many record holders still playing. Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan became the highest Test wicket-taker in December 2007, when he passed Shane Warne's total of 708 wickets.^[18] Within a year, the equivalent batting record of highest run-scorer had also changed hands: Sachin Tendulkar surpassed the tally of 11,953 runs by Brian Lara.^[19] The records for most dismissals by a wicket-keeper and catches by a fielder are also held by active players: Mark Boucher and Rahul Dravid respectively.

Contents [hide] 1 Listing criteria 2 Listing notation 3 Team records 3.1 Team wins, losses and draws 3.1.1 Matches played 3.2 Result records 3.2.1 Greatest win margins (by innings) 3.2.2 Greatest win margin (by runs) 3.2.3 Narrowest win margin (by wickets) 3.2.4 Narrowest win margin (by runs) 3.2.5 Follow-on records (victory after following-on) 3.3 Team scoring records 4 Individual records 4.1 Individual records (batting) 4.1.1 Career runs and career average 4.1.2 Innings or series 4.1.3 Most runs in an over 4.1.4 Centuries 4.2 Individual records (bowling) 4.2.1 Career 4.2.2 Series 4.2.3 Innings 4.2.4 Match records 4.3 Individual records (fielding) 4.3.1 Most catches in Test career 4.4 Individual records (wicket-keeping) 4.5 Individual records (other) 5 Partnership records 5.1 Highest wicket partnerships 5.2 Highest partnerships 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

Listing criteria

In general the top five are listed in each category (except when there is a tie for the last place among the five, when all the tied record holders are noted).

Listing notation

Team notation

• (300-3) indicates that a team scored 300 runs for three wickets and the innings was closed, either due to a successful run chase or if no playing time remained.
• (300-3 d) indicates that a team scored 300 runs for three wickets, and declared its innings closed.
• (300) indicates that a team scored 300 runs and was all out.

Batting notation

• (100) indicates that a batsman scored 100 runs and was out.
• (100*) indicates that a batsman scored 100 runs and was not out.

Bowling notation

• (5-100) indicates that a bowler has captured 5 wickets while conceding 100 runs.

Currently playing

• † indicates a current Test cricketer.

Seasons

• Cricket is played during the summer months in most countries. Domestic cricket seasons in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and the West Indies may therefore span two calendar years, and are by convention said to be played in (e.g.) "2008–09". A cricket season in England is described as a single year. e.g. "2009". An international Test series may be for a much shorter duration, and Cricinfo treats this issue by stating "any series or matches which began between May and September of any given year will appear in the relevant single year season and any that began between October and April will appear in the relevant cross-year season".^[20] In the record tables, a two-year span generally indicates that the record was set within a domestic season in one of the above named countries.

Team records

Team wins, losses and draws

Matches played

Team	First Test match	Matches	Won	Lost	Drawn	Tied	% Won	% Won, Tied or Drawn
England	01877-03-15 15 March 1877	907	320	261	326	0	35.28	71.22
Australia	01877-03-15 15 March 1877	729	341	191	195	2	46.77	73.79
West Indies	01928-06-23 23 June 1928	468	152	154	161	1	32.47	67.09
India	01932-06-25 25 June 1932	447	108	139	198	1	24.16	68.68
New Zealand	01930-01-10 10 January 1930	362	68	146	148	0	18.78	59.66
South Africa	01889-03-12 12 March 1889	357	125	123	108	0	35.01	65.26
Pakistan	01952-10-16 16 October 1952	354	106	99	149	0	29.94	72.03
Sri Lanka	01982-02-17 17 February 1982	198	61	70	67	0	30.80	64.63
Zimbabwe	01992-10-18 18 October 1992	83	8	49	26	0	9.63	40.96
Bangladesh	02000-11-10 10 November 2000	68	3	59	6	0	4.41	13.23
ICC World XI	02005-10-14 14 October 2005	1	0	1	0	0	0.00	0.00
Last updated: 8 November 2010[21]

Result records

Greatest win margins (by innings)

Margin	Teams	Venue	Season
Innings and 579 runs	England (903-7 d) beat Australia (201 & 123)	The Oval, London	1938
Innings and 360 runs	Australia (652-7 d) beat South Africa (159 & 133)	New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg	2001–02
Innings and 336 runs	West Indies (614-5 d) beat India (124 & 154)	Eden Gardens, Kolkata	1958–59
Innings and 332 runs	Australia (645) beat England (141 & 172)	Brisbane Cricket Ground	1946–47
Innings and 324 runs	Pakistan (643) beat New Zealand (73 & 246)	Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore	2002
Last updated: 9 August 2009[22]

Greatest win margin (by runs)

Margin	Teams	Venue	Season
675 runs	England (521 & 342-8 d) beat Australia (122 & 66)	Brisbane Exhibition Ground	1928–29
562 runs	Australia (701 & 327) beat England (321 & 145)	The Oval, London	1934
530 runs	Australia (328 & 578) beat South Africa (205 & 171)	Melbourne Cricket Ground	1910–11
491 runs	Australia (381 & 361-5 d) beat Pakistan (179 & 72)	WACA Ground, Perth	2004–05
465 runs	Sri Lanka (384 & 447-6 d) beat Bangladesh (208 & 158)	Chittagong Divisional Stadium	2008–09
Last updated: 9 August 2009[23]