Top 5: Most Centuries in Test Cricket

Test cricket tests cricketers completely. To be on the field for 90 overs a day and play for 5 days requires good fitness and mental toughness.

Test cricket is surely the toughest format to play, but there are a few batters who managed to master the format and smash a lot of hundreds.

In this article, we will talk about the top 5 batters with the most centuries in Test cricket.

5. Rahul Dravid (India) – 36

Former Indian batter Rahul Dravid was known as the “Wall of Indian Cricket” because of his ability to play long knocks, play out tough spells, and dominate the opposition.

In his career of 164 Test matches, he scored 36 centuries, and 28 came while batting at 3. Dravid was India’s finest No. 3 batter, scoring more than 10000 runs at the position and making his team win the matches.

Dravid’s most number of centuries came against England. He scored a total of 7 tons against them, with 6 coming in England and 1 in India. 

4. Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka) – 38

Former Sri Lankan wicketkeeper batter Kumar Sangakkara scored 38 centuries from 134 Test matches. He holds the record for scoring the most Test centuries for Sri Lanka.

Similar to Dravid, Sanga was also the finest No. 3 batter of Sri Lanka, someone who was reliable and consistent. Sanga’s 37 hundreds came at the No. 3 batting position — the most in that position by any batter — while his remaining one ton came batting at No. 4.

The left-handed batter loved batting against Pakistan. He scored 10 centuries, averaged over 70, and scored 2911 runs against them.

3. Ricky Ponting (Australia) – 41

Ricky Ponting, one of the most successful Australian Test captains, was a great batter too, who smashed 41 Test centuries and scored 13378 runs from 168 Test matches. Ricky, who was a master of pull shots, was destined to find success on Australian soil, where the wickets are bouncy.

He scored 23 hundreds on his home soil while scoring 5 in the West Indies. The right-hander struggled in Asia, but he still managed to hit 5 tons there from 28 Tests.

Out of 41 centuries, 24 of Ricky’s tons came against England, South Africa, and India. Whenever the Border Gavaskar Trophy happened in Australia, Ponting hit India well, and he was a consistent run-getter in the Ashes too.

The Australian team’s record against South Africa hasn’t been good in Tests, but the right-hander never missed a chance to score runs against them too, averaging over 45 and smashing 8 tons from 26 Tests. 

Also Read | Top 5: Most Runs as Captain in a Calendar Year in Test Cricket

2. Jacques Kallis (South Africa) – 45

Former South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis was one of the biggest reasons for South Africa’s dominance in Test cricket. Kallis represented South Africa in 165 Tests and scored 13206 runs at an average of 55, including 45 centuries.

The only place where the right-hander struggled was England, where he managed to average just 35, but whenever the England team toured South Africa, he smashed them all around the park, having scored 8 tons against them.

The West Indies and India are those two teams against whom Kallis always fired, averaging around 70 against both and smashing 8 tons against the Windies while 7 against India.

The all-rounder peaked in 2004 and 2005 where he averaged over 70 for consecutive years and scored a total of 9 tons. Barring 45 centuries, Kallis also took 291 wickets for the Proteas in his Test career.

1. Sachin Tendulkar (India) – 51

Former Indian batter Sachin Tendulkar holds the record for scoring the most Test centuries. He scored 51 Test centuries along with 15921 runs — the most by a batter — at an average of 53 from 200 Tests.

The right-hander batter scored more tons away than home, scoring 29 away and 22 at home. Sachin scored 6 tons in Australia and 5 each in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and South Africa. 

Sachin performed best at the No. 4 position, hitting 44 of his 51 tons, while 5 centuries came at the No. 5 position. During his last phase, Sachin was able to hit just one century, but before the decline, in 2010, Sachin scored 7 tons — the most he scored in a single year.