With the emergence of limited-overs it has been an undeniable fact that Test cricket has lost the old charishma. Yet,the longest format of cricket never fails to give some great memories to the viewers and players. Though the focus has become on limited overs, the boards and officials have been making all the effort to give the credit Test cricket deserves. The ICC Test Championship backs up the claims.
Cricwizz takes a look into the Top 5 batsman with most runs in Test over the decade.
1. Alastair Cook (2010-2018)
The No.1 player in our list is Alastair Cook, also known as Sir Alastair Nathan Cook. The award of the title Sir explains the impact this player has made in the English team and also Test cricket. With several records to his name and many comparing him to Sachin Tendulkar. He was the best Opener England could ask for at that time.
He dominated the bowlers irrespective of the pitch and conditions. The 35-year old amassed 8818 runs in the 111 Tests he played for England in the last decade at an average of 46.41. It included 23 centuries and 37 fifties with his highest score being 294.
He holds several records including the highest run-scorer for England and the youngest to reach 12,000 Test runs. The Left-handed opener also holds a number of captaincy records to his name. Cook announced his retirement from the game on 3rd September 2018. He ended his career as the fifth highest run-scorer in the history of test cricket and the highest scoring left-handed batsman in Test history.
2. Joe Root (2012-2019)
The current captain of the English team grabs the 2nd spot on our list. Joe Root has managed to score 7359 runs in the mere 89 matches he represented England for. He scored his runs at an astonishing average of 48.41 which included 17 centuries and 45 fifties. The 29-year old has a high score of 254 in Tests. The Right-hander is ranked 8th in the ICC Test Batsmen ranking.
On the Occasion of England’s 1000th in August 2018, Root was named in the Country’s greatest Test X1 by ECB.
3. Virat Kohli (2011-2019)
Yes, no list is complete without the current Indian captain. Virat Kohli known as the run-machine of cricket. He again makes his name in the highest run scorers list, he was also in the list of the highest run-scorers in the ODIs in the last decade. This shows the sheer dominance of the 31-year-old in International cricket in the last decade.
Kohli has scored 7202 runs in the 84 matches he played for India in the last decade at an stunning average of 54.97, which is the second highest average in our list. He has managed to score 27 hundreds and 22 fifties, his 27 centuries was the most by any batsman in the last decade. He has a high score 254* in Test cricket.
Kohli has been the recipient of many awards such as the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy also known as ICC Cricketer of the Year in 2017 and 2018, ICC Test Player of the Year 2018.
He is currently ranked 2nd in the ICC Test Batsman rankings.
4. Steve Smith (2010-2019)
The former Australian captain grabs the 4th spot on the list with 7164 runs to his name in the last decade in which he played 72 matches for Australia. He scored his runs at an spectacular average of 62.84, which is the highest in our list. He has 26 hundreds and 28 fifties to his name with 239 as his highest score to his name.It is also to be noted that Smith lost almost an year and half due to the involvement in the ball tampering issue along with David Warner in 2018.
The 31-year old has many awards to his name, including the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy (ICC Cricketer of the Year) in 2015, Australian Test Player of the Year in 2015, 2018. On 30 December 2017, Smith reached a Test batting rating of 947, the second-highest of all time, only behind Don Bradman's 961.
He is currently ranked No.1 in the ICC Test Batsmen ranking.
5. David Warner (2011-2019)
David Warner makes it to the 5th spot on the list. The Australian opener is known as ‘Pocket dynamite’- he makes all justice to his nickname in his batting. He is ready to take on the bowlers from the word go with great consistency which makes him one of the best batsman in the world.The former captain of Australia has piled up 7088 runs at an average of 48.21 in the 83 matches he played for Australia. He has scored 23 hundreds and 30 half centuries to his name with a jaw dropping high score of 335*.
He is currently ranked 6th in the ICC Test Batsman ranking.
Cover Credits: IndiaToday
