Top 5: Highest Innings Totals in Border-Gavaskar Trophy

India and Australia have long produced a lot of amazing batting talents. These batters know how to bat long and score big runs on their day, and this is why we see these teams post huge totals on the board in Test cricket.

Wonder what the biggest totals that had been posted when these sides met each other in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) were? Well, here are the top-5 highest innings totals in Border-Gavaskar Trophy history.

1. 705/7dec by India – 2 January 2004, Sydney

It was a decider of the 2004 BGT at the SCG, and the iconic ground witnessed a high-scoring contest.

Winning the toss and opting to bat first, India made the best use of the batting conditions on offer and scored a whopping 705 runs for the loss of seven wickets, their first 700-plus total in Test cricket. This is still India’s fourth-highest total in Test cricket and second-best away from home.

The main architects of this massive total were Sachin Tendulkar, who registered his then-best highest Test score of 241*, and Aussie tormentor VVS Laxman, who made 178. The duo shared a whopping 353-run stand for the fourth wicket, and a couple of fifties from Virender Sehwag and Parthiv Patel ensured India crossed the 700-run mark.

India claimed a first innings lead of 231 runs and further added 211 runs in their second essay with the bat. A win was in sight at one point for the visitors, but stubborn resistance from Steve Waugh in his final Test innings meant the game and series ended in a thrilling draw.

2. 659/4dec by Australia – 3 January 2012, Sydney

Eight years later, Sydney witnessed another run-fest, and this time from the bat of the home side. On a good batting surface, Indian batters failed to put anything noteworthy on the board as they got bowled out for a mere 191.

Taking advantage of a down-and-out Indian side, Australian batsmen made merry on the New Year’s game. Despite losing three early wickets, a massive triple century from Michael Clarke (329), and centuries from Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey propelled Australia to a daunting first innings total.

India did show some batting form in the second outing, scoring 400, but the first innings effort by Australia was enough to secure them a win by innings and 68 runs.

Also Read | Top 5: Most Runs in a Single Border-Gavaskar Trophy Series

3. 657/7dec by India – 11 March 2001, Kolkata

This was a Test match for ages and one that will never go out of the memory of a true cricket enthusiast.

After a resounding win in Mumbai, Australia were in the ascendancy of the Kolkata Test post the first half. They had a first innings lead of about 274 runs and decided to enforce a follow-on.

What next transpired was history, where India made the Aussies toil in the third innings, scoring a jaw-dropping 657 runs. This was thanks to out-of-the-world knocks from VVS Laxman (281) and Rahul Dravid (180) and their legendary 376-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

It gave India 383 runs to defend, and the bowlers did the job to secure a famous win for the team.

4. 633/5dec by India – 18 March 1998, Kolkata

It was an innings where all of India’s top-6 scored fifty or more in the same innings, with the then-Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin converting it into a biggie (163). This was after the hosts bowled out a formidable batting unit for 233 in the first innings.

As a result, India gained a huge first innings lead of 400, and the visiting team was no match in the second innings as well, getting bowled out for 181. It was a perfect game for India after being set up nicely by the bowlers and then backed up by a scintillating batting performance.

5. 622/7dec by India – 3 Jan 2019, Sydney

We are back to Sydney, and this one was a traditional New Year’s Test match. India, who were on the cusp of their first-ever Test series win on Australian soil, produced a solid batting performance in the first innings of the last match of the tour at the SCG.

Opting to bat first, India amassed a solid first innings score of 622, thanks to a brilliant 193 from their in-form batter Cheteshwar Pujara and a counterattacking 159* from their keeper-batter Rishabh Pant. Rain curtailed what would have been an amazing win for India, but the first innings score made it to the top-5 biggest totals in BGT history.