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The Hot 100: The Fastest and Slowest Test Batsmen of All Time

 

 

 

 

 The Fastest-Scoring Test Batsmen: Historically Adjusted

 

The Fastest-Scoring Test Batsmen of All Time

 

The Slowest-Scoring Batsmen of All Time

 

The Most Tenacious Batsmen: Longest Average Innings

 

The Fastest Batsmen of All Time in Runs per Hour

 

The Slowest Batsmen of All Time in Runs per Hour

 

The Fastest Batsmen, adjusted for historical scoring changes

 

 

 

 

 

The Hot 100: The Fastest-Scoring Test Batsmen of All Time

 

Qualification: 1000 runs or 2000 balls faced in Tests, average over 20. Data to November 2022. Qualification raised to 1500 runs, 2500 balls for most recent careers.

 

Career

Career  Runs

Career  Average

Runs/ 100 balls

1. Shahid Afridi (Pak)

1998-2010

1716

36.5

87.0

2. V Sehwag (Ind)

2001-

8586

49.3

82.2

3. AC Gilchrist (Aus)

1999-2008

5570

47.6

82.0

4. N Kapil Dev (Ind)

1978-1994

5248

31.1

80.5

5. MW Tate (Eng)

1924-1935

1198

25.5

75.4

6. RR Pant (Ind)

2018-

2123

43.3

72.7

7. JH Sinclair (SA)

1896-1911

1069

23.2

72.1

8. DA Warner (Aus)

2011-

7817

46.5

71.3

9. Sarfraz Ahmed (Pak)

2010-

2657

36.4

71.0

10. Q de Kock (SA)

2014-

3300

38.8

70.9

11. IVA Richards (Sri)

1974-1991

8540

50.2

69.0

12. VT Trumper (Aus)

1899-1912

3163

39.0

67.1

13. S Dhawan (Ind)

2013-

2315

40.6

66.9

14. DPDN Dickwella (Sri)

2014-

2750

31.6

66.6

15. TM Dilshan (Sri)

1999-

5492

41.0

65.5

16. ST Jayasuriya (Sri)

1991-2007

6973

40.1

65.2

17. K Srikkanth (Ind)

1981-1992

2062

29.9

65.1

18. BB McCullum (NZ)

2004-

6453

38.6

64.6

19. MA Starc (Aus)

2011-

1816

22.1

64.5

20. SM Patil (Ind)

1980-1984

1588

36.9

63.6

21. Kamran Akmal (Pak)

2002-2010

2648

30.8

63.1

22. IDS Smith (NZ)

1980-1992

1815

25.6

63.0

23. A Flintoff (Eng)

1998-2009

3845

31.8

62.0

24. JM Gregory (Aus)

1920-1928

1146

37.0

62.0

25. DS Lehmann (Aus)

1998-2004

1798

45.0

61.8

26. Shakib Al Hasan (Ban)

2007-

4251

39.0

61.7

27. KP Pietersen (Eng)

2005-

8181

47.3

61.7

28. MJ Prior (Eng)

2007-

4099

40.2

61.7

29. SJ McCabe (Aus)

1930-1938

2748

48.2

61.5

30. DG Bradman (Aus)

1928-1948

6996

99.9

61.0

31. FE Woolley (Eng)

1909-1934

3283

36.1

60.7

32. IT Botham (Eng)

1977-1992

5200

33.5

60.7

33. BC Lara (WI)

1990-2006

11953

52.9

60.5

34. RS Kaluwitharana (Sri)

1992-2004

1933

26.1

60.4

35. Habibul Bashar (Ban)

2000-2008

3026

30.9

60.3

36. CH Gayle (WI)

2000-

7215

42.2

60.3

37. ML Hayden (Aus)

1994-2009

8625

50.7

60.1

38. L Klusener (SA)

1996-2004

1906

32.9

59.8

39. GC Smith (SA)

2002-

9265

48.3

59.7

40. CH Lloyd (Sri)

1966-1985

7515

46.7

59-60

41. RA Jadeja (Ind)

2012-

2523

36.6

59.5

42. LRD Mendis (Sri)

1982-1988

1329

31.6

59.3

43. LRPL Taylor (NZ)

2007-

7683

44.7

59.3

44. MS Dhoni (Ind)

2005-

4876

38.1

59.1

45. FM Engineer (Ind)

1961-1975

2611

31.1

58-59

46. EdeC Weekes (Sri)

1948-1958

4455

58.6

58-59

47. RT Ponting (Aus)

1995-

13378

51.9

58.7

48. VG Kambli (Ind)

1993-1995

1084

54.2

58.6

49. C Hill (Aus)

1896-1912

3412

39.2

58-59

50. AL Logie (Sri)

1983-1991

2470

35.8

58.5

51. BJ Haddin (Aus)

2008-

3265

33.0

58.4

52. MG Johnson (Aus)

2007-

2065

22.2

58.4

53. BA Stokes (Eng)

2013-

5429

36.2

58.3

54. DL Vettori (NZ)

1997-

4531

30.0

58.2

55. Tamim Iqbal (Ban)

2008-

5082

39.1

58.1

56. Yuvraj Singh (Ind)

2003-

1900

33.9

58.0

57. AK Markram (SA)

2017-

2009

34.1

57.8

58. CG Macartney (Aus)

1907-1926

2131

41.8

57.7

59. Yasir Hameed (Pak)

2003-2010

1491

32.4

57.6

60. JM Bairstow (Eng)

2012-

5482

37.0

57.6

61. RA McLean (SA)

1951-1964

2120

30.3

57-58

62. M Azharuddin (Ind)

1985-2000

6215

45.0

57.4

63. DW Hookes (Aus)

1977-1985

1306

34.4

57.3

64. Liton Das (Ban)

2015-

2112

35.8

57.2

65. CL Cairns (NZ)

1989-2004

3320

33.5

57.2

66. DM de Silva (Sri)

2016-

2815

37.0

56.6

67. JO Holder (WI)

2014-

2571

30.6

56.6

68. JA Burns (Aus)

2014-

1442

37.0

56.4

69. RJ Hadlee (NZ)

1973-1990

3124

27.2

56.2

70. BRM Taylor (Zim)

2004-

2320

36.3

56.1

71. Mohammad Hafeez (Pak)

2003-

3652

37.6

56.0

72. MJ Clarke (Aus)

2004-

8643

49.1

55.9

73. RG Pollock (SA)

1963-1970

2256

61.0

55.8

74. RG Sharma (Ind)

2013-

3137

46.1

55.8

75. Saeed Anwar (Pak)

1990-2001

4052

45.5

55.8

76. RA Duff (Aus)

1902-1905

1317

35.6

55-56

77. V Kohli (Ind)

2011-

8074

49.5

55.7

78. AC Voges (Aus)

2015-

1485

61.9

55.7

79. Aamir Sohail (Pak)

1992-2000

2823

35.3

55.6

80. JE Root (Eng)

2012-

10504

49.8

55.5

81. BKG Mendis (Sri)

2015-

3402

34.4

55.2

82. Zaheer Abbas (Pak)

1969-1985

5062

44.8

55.1

83. CD McMillan (NZ)

1997-2005

3116

38.5

54.9

84. DT Lindsay (SA)

1963-1970

1130

37.7

54.9

85. M Labuschagne (Aus)

2018-

2539

54.0

54.7

86. TM Head (Aus)

2018-

1601

39.0

54.7

87. R Ashwin (Ind)

2011-

2931

26.9

54.6

88. WU Tharanga (Sri)

2005-

1754

31.9

54.6

89. AB de Villiers (SA)

2004-

8765

50.7

54.5

90. ME Trescothick (Eng)

2000-2006

5825

43.8

54.5

91. Z Crawley (Eng)

2019-

1363

27.3

54.5

92. OJD Pope (Eng)

2018-

1488

31.0

54.4

93. JL Langer (Aus)

1993-2007

7696

45.3

54.2

94. KC Sangakkara (Sri)

2000-

12400

57.4

54.2

95. JC Buttler (Eng)

2014-

2907

31.9

54.2

96. J Darling (Aus)

1894-1905

1657

28.6

54-55

97. SPD Smith (Aus)

2010-

8161

60.0

54.1

98. Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pak)

1992-2007

8830

50.2

54.0

99. SR Tendulkar (Ind)

1989-

15921

53.8

54.0

100. J Blackwood (WI)

2014-

2528

30.8

53.6

 

GL Jessop (Eng 1899-1912) scored at about 112 r/100b, but scored only 569 runs in Tests.

 

 

 

The Slowest-Scoring Batsmen of All Time

 

Career

Career Runs

Career Average

Runs/ 100 balls

554. Wazir Mohammad (Pak)

1952-1959

801

27.6

29-30

555. BA Pocock (NZ)

1993-1997

665

22.9

29.8

556. JM Brearley (Eng)

1976-1981

1442

22.9

29.8

557. Alim-ud-din (Pak)

1954-1962

1091

25.4

29-30

558. JW Burke (Aus)

1951-1959

1280

34.6

29.2

559. CB Van Ryneveld (SA)

1951-1958

724

26.8

28.9

560. Asif Mujtaba (Pak)

1986-1997

928

24.4

28.7

561. TW Jarvis (NZ)

1965-1973

625

29.8

27-28

562. TJ Franklin (NZ)

1983-1991

828

23.0

26.7

563. TE Bailey (Eng)

1949-1959

2290

29.7

26.5

564. RG Barlow (Eng)

1882-1887

591

22.7

26-27

565. AJ Pithey (SA)

1957-1965

819

31.5

26.5

566. AC Bannerman (Aus)

1879-1893

1108

23.1

22.4

567. GO Rabone (NZ)

1949-1955

562

31.2

21-22

568. WH Scotton (Eng)

1882-1887

510

22.2

21-22

 

Slowest recent batsman: Rajin Saleh (Bangladesh),35.9 r/100b;

 TR Gripper ( Zimbabwe) 32.7.

 

 

 

The Most Tenacious Batsmen: Longest Average Innings

 

Career

Career Runs

Runs/ 100 balls

Balls per Dismissal

1. DG Bradman (Aus)

1928-1948

6996

61.0

164

2. H Sutcliffe (Eng)

1924-1935

4555

37.3

163

3. B Mitchell (SA)

1929-1949

3471

30.9

158

4. SG Barnes (Aus)

1938-1948

1072

41.0

154

5. L Hutton (Eng)

1937-1955

6971

38.3

148

6. DR Jardine (Eng)

1928-1934

1296

32.8

146

7. KF Barrington (Eng)

1955-1968

6806

41.1

144

8. CA Davis (Sri)

1968-1973

1301

38-39

143

9. GO Rabone (NZ)

1949-1955

562

21-22

142

10. GA Headley (Sri)

1930-1954

2190

44.0

138

11. GM Turner (NZ)

1969-1983

2991

32-33

138

12. WM Woodfull (Aus)

1926-1934

2300

34-35

135

13. G Boycott (Eng)

1964-1982

8114

35.4

135

14. Hanif Mohammad (Pak)

1952-1969

3915

33-34

135

15. JF Reid (NZ)

1979-1986

1296

35.4

131

16. JDB Robertson (Eng)

1947-1952

881

35.6

130

17. E Paynter (Eng)

1931-1939

1540

45.5

130

18. AF Rae (Sri)

1948-1953

1016

35-36

129

19. WR Hammond (Eng)

1927-1947

7249

45.2

129

20. EAB Rowan (SA)

1935-1951

1965

34.2

128

21. CP Mead (Eng)

1911-1928

1185

38-39

128

22. CAG Russell (Eng)

1920-1923

910

44.7

127

23. DJ McGlew (SA)

1951-1962

2440

33-34

127

24. AD Nourse (SA)

1935-1951

2960

42.7

126

25. R Subba Row (Eng)

1958-1961

984

37.7

124

26. HL Collins (Aus)

1920-1926

1352

36.3

124

27. A Melville (SA)

1938-1949

894

42.5

124

28. AR Border (Aus)

1978-1994

11174

41.0

123

29. RS Dravid (Ind)

1996-

13288

42.5

123

30. GE Tyldesley (Eng)

1921-1929

990

44-45

122

31. DCS Compton (Eng)

1937-1957

5807

41.2

122

32. WM Lawry (Aus)

1961-1971

5234

38.8

121

33. VS Hazare (Ind)

1946-1953

2192

39-40

121

34. JH Kallis (SA)

1995-

13289

46.0

120

35. VM Merchant (Ind)

1933-1951

859

40-41

119

 

 

 

The Fastest Batsmen of All Time in Runs per Hour

 

Career Runs

Runs/ Hour

1. MW Tate (Eng)

1924-1935

1170

44

2. VT Trumper (Aus)

1899-1912

3163

40

3. JH Sinclair (SA)

1896-1911

1064

40

4. JM Gregory (Aus)

1920-1928

1146

39

5. SJ McCabe (Aus)

1930-1938

2748

38

6. FE Woolley (Eng)

1909-1934

3270

38

7. CG Macartney (Aus)

1907-1926

2131

37

8. DG Bradman (Aus)

1928-1948

6996

37

9. AC Gilchrist (Aus)

1999-

5570

34

10. C Hill (Aus)

1896-1912

3411

34

11. RA Duff (Aus)

1902-1905

1317

34

12. Shahid Afridi (Pak)

1998-

1716

34

13. JB Hobbs (Eng)

1908-1930

5401

33

14. TG Evans (Eng)

1946-1959

2439

33

15. N Kapil Dev (Ind)

1978-1994

5011

33

16. EdeC Weekes (WI)

1948-1958

4453

33

17. J Darling (Aus)

1894-1905

1657

32

18. J Ryder (Aus)

1920-1929

1394

32

19. W Bardsley (Aus)

1909-1926

2469

32

20. FS Jackson (Eng)

1893-1905

1407

32

21. V Sehwag (Ind)

2001-

7735

32

22. HB Cameron (SA)

1927-1935

1219

32

23. RA McLean (SA)

1951-1964

2106

32

24. RG Pollock (SA)

1963-1970

2256

32

25. CJ Barnett (Eng)

1933-1948

1086

31

26. J Hardstaff jnr (Eng)

1935-1948

1625

31

27. WR Hammond (Eng)

1927-1947

7240

31

28. GA Faulkner (SA)

1906-1924

1747

31

29. RH Catterall (SA)

1922-1931

1555

31

30. SE Gregory (Aus)

1890-1912

2259

30

31. VS Ransford (Aus)

1907-1912

1211

30

32. WH Ponsford (Aus)

1924-1934

2122

30

33. WW Armstrong (Aus)

1902-1921

2863

30

34. AC MacLaren (Eng)

1894-1909

1931

30

35. EH Hendren (Eng)

1920-1935

3525

30

36. WG Grace (Eng)

1880-1899

1090

30

 

Minimum 1000 runs. Note runs totals in this table are those innings for which times are available. Last updated 2011.

 

 

.. and the Slowest Batsmen of All Time in Runs per Hour

 

Career Runs

Runs/ Hour

JC Adams (WI)

1992-2001

3012

16.0

GJ Rennie (Zim)

1997-2002

1023

16.0

GW Flower (Zim)

1992-2004

3457

15.8

AC Bannerman (Aus)

1879-1893

1095

15.3

J Dyson (Aus)

1977-1984

1359

15.1

JN Gillespie (Aus)

1996-

1218

15.0

JW Burke (Aus)

1951-1959

1280

15.4

Khaled Mashud (Ban)

2000-

1409

15.0

Rajin Saleh (Ban)

2003-

1141

15.4

TE Bailey (Eng)

1949-1959

2290

15.2

ED Solkar (Ind)

1969-1977

1068

15.3

NJ Contractor (Ind)

1955-1962

1611

15.0

Yashpal Sharma (Ind)

1979-1983

1536

15.4

UC Hathurusinghe (Sri)

1991-1999

1274

15.0

JM Brearley (Eng)

1976-1981

1442

14.4

BA Edgar (NZ)

1978-1986

1958

14.4

CJ Tavare (Eng)

1980-1989

1755

13.5

RW Taylor (Eng)

1971-1984

1156

13.0

 

Minimum 1000 runs. Note runs totals in this table are those innings for which times are available. Last updated 2011.

 

 

NEW

 

The Fastest Batsmen, adjusted for historical scoring changes

 

 

These scoring rates attempt a better comparison of batsmen of different eras, since scoring standards have changed over the years, particularly with the shrinking of grounds and introduction of “superbats” in the early 21st century. For example, scoring rates of 21st Century batsmen have been ‘discounted’, based on the recent general rise in scoring speeds. Virender Sehwag’s rate has fallen from 82.2 to 72.9 runs per 100 balls, although he retains #1 position.

 

 

 

Data updated to 2022. Qualification is restricted to fully recognized batsmen only, with an average batting position of 6.1 or less. This generally excludes wicketkeeper/batsmen or lower-middle order all-rounders, who have become more prominent in recent fast-scoring lists. Such qualification is somewhat arbitrary; Jimmy Sinclair’s qualification is debatable.

 

 

Career

Career  Runs

Initial

Runs/100 balls

Adjusted

Runs/100 Balls

 

1. V Sehwag (Ind)

2001-2013

8586

82.2

73.5

2. JH Sinclair (SAf)

1896-1911

1069

71.8

71.6

3. IVA Richards (WI)

1974-1991

8540

68.8

69.2

4. VT Trumper (Aus)

1899-1912

3163

67.0

65.1

5. K Srikkanth (Ind)

1981-1992

2062

65.1

65.0

6. SM Patil (Ind)

1980-1984

1588

63.6

64.8

7. SJ McCabe (Aus)

1930-1938

2748

61.5

64.7

8. DA Warner (Aus)

2011-2022

7817

71.3

64.0

9. ST Jayasuriya (SL)

1991-2007

6973

65.2

63.1

10. RA McLean (SAf)

1951-1964

2120

57.4

62.9

11. RG Pollock (SAf)

1963-1970

2256

55.8

61.9

12. DG Bradman (Aus)

1928-1948

6996

61.0

61.2

13. CG Macartney (Aus)

1907-1926

2131

57.5

60.4

14. FE Woolley (Eng)

1909-1934

3283

60.2

60.3

15. S Dhawan (Ind)

2013-2018

2315

66.9

60.2

16. CH Lloyd (WI)

1966-1984

7515

59.5

59.0

17. TM Dilshan (SL)

1999-2013

5492

65.5

58.5

18. BC Lara (WI)

1990-2006

11953

60.5

58.1

19. AL Logie (WI)

1983-1991

2470

58.8

58.1

20. C Hill (Aus)

1896-1912

3412

58.5

57.8

21. M Azharuddin (Ind)

1984-2000

6215

57.4

57.8

22. BB McCullum (NZ)

2004-2016

6453

64.6

57.2

23. SM Nurse (WI)

1960-1969

2523

53.3

57.2

24. J Darling (Aus)

1894-1905

1657

54.2

56.7

25. Aamir Sohail (Pak)

1992-2000

2823

55.6

56.7

26. Saeed Anwar (Pak)

1990-2001

4052

55.8

56.3

27. RA Duff (Aus)

1902-1905

1317

55.8

56.3

28. FM Engineer (Ind)

1961-1975

2611

58.9

56.3

29. GStA Sobers (WI)

1954-1974

8032

52.4

56.1

30. Habibul Bashar (Ban)

2000-2008

3026

60.3

55.6

31. ML Hayden (Aus)

1994-2009

8625

60.1

55.4

32. EdeC Weekes (WI)

1948-1958

4455

58.7

55.4

33. W Bardsley (Aus)

1909-1926

2469

52.3

55.3

34. Shakib Al Hasan (Ban)

2007-2022

4251

61.7

55.0

35. RN Harvey (Aus)

1948-1963

6149

49.7

55.0

36. CH Gayle (WI)

2000-2014

7214

60.3

54.9

37. Zaheer Abbas (Pak)

1969-1985

5062

55.1

54.7

38. CL Walcott (WI)

1948-1960

3798

52.9

54.6