Since the last decade, we have witnessed several star batsmen who have made Test cricket their own comfort zone and arena. The likes of Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen among a few others have made their debuts post 1st January 2005 and have seriously taken the test batting records by storm. Batsmen from several countries have been fluent run makers and have garnered millions of fans across the globe by their sheer audacity.
But what ultimately counts is where they truly are positioned in comparison to their contemporaries. Thus, we glance through the top 10 leading run getters in test cricket since the last 10 years and consider the runs scored from 1st January 2005.
Leading the list is the current England captain Alastair Cook with 9000 runs in Test cricket. Cook made his debut in 2006 against India in Nagpur. Cook left a striking impression in his debut game itself as he notched up a sensational ton away from home in alien conditions. Since then, there has been no looking back for the English run machine. Cook in the period also became England’s most successful Test batsman and has 27 tons to his name.
Following Cook is another southpaw, but from the subcontinent. It’s none other than Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara. Sangakkara has 8905 runs to his name in 88 test matches. Among all the ten batsmen, Sangakkara’s average is the highest with 62.27. The Sri Lankan batting great has 31 tons to his name, which is once again the highest in the list. Sangakkara has dominated every bowling attack and his outstanding statistics speak for themselves.
Following Sangakkara is another Englishman. It is England’s most entertaining cricketer till date – Kevin Pietersen. Pietersen made his debut in the 2005 Ashes series and over the course of a decade; he has mauled every bowling attack with his sheer aggression and aura. Pietersen has 8181 runs with 23 centuries to his credit. But sadly, fans might never witness the magic of Pietersen again as his tussles with the England side remain unattended to.
A shocking revelation is that there are NO INDIANS in the list of the top 10 run getters in tests since 2005! That is enough to explain their tragedy in overseas test matches. However, when the Indians were the mace holders in tests, at that time their batsmen were in peak form. The leading run getter for India in this period has been Virender Sehwag who has scored 6051 runs in 73 matches with the help of 15 tons. Sehwag’s average is an impressive 48.40.
Below is the table with the detailed statistics of the top 10 leading run getters since the last decade.
Do check out to know if your favourite Test batsman has made the list or not!
|
Name |
Matches |
Innings |
Runs |
Highest |
Average |
100’ s |
50’s |
|
A. Cook |
114 |
204 |
9000 |
294 |
46.87 |
27 |
42 |
|
K. Sangakkara |
88 |
156 |
8905 |
319 |
62.27 |
31 |
34 |
|
K. Pietersen |
104 |
181 |
8181 |
227 |
47.28 |
23 |
35 |
|
M. Clarke |
102 |
176 |
7915 |
329* |
50.73 |
26 |
25 |
|
A.B. De Villiers |
96 |
158 |
7498 |
278* |
52.43 |
21 |
35 |
|
I. Bell |
109 |
189 |
7284 |
235 |
43.61 |
22 |
41 |
|
M. Jayawardene |
84 |
146 |
7076 |
374 |
50.90 |
22 |
28 |
|
R. Ponting |
84 |
151 |
6932 |
221 |
49.87 |
21 |
36 |
|
J. Kallis |
82 |
139 |
6848 |
224 |
56.13 |
27 |
25 |
|
H. Amla |
80 |
137 |
6730 |
311* |
54.27 |
23 |
28 |
*Stats updated till 4th July, 2015