Which batsman holds the record for scoring the most runs in a Test?
(23 July 2002)
The first Test of India's 1990 tour of England will remain one of the
most memorable ever. Lord's, the prim and propah headquarters
of cricket that was the venue, witnessed as many as 1,603 runs being
scored. Six individual Test hundreds - one of them a triple, 333 to be
exact - were required to push the match aggregate beyond the previous
highest of 1,601, set in a 1930 Test match between England and
Australia that was Don Bradman's debut at Lord's.
Of these hundreds, the most dazzling was definitely the 121 that
recently-crowned Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin made in the Indian
first innings. In a knock notable for its sheer audacity and genius,
Azhar stroked as many 22 fours off 111 balls, each of them leaving the
spectators and critics purring in delight.
A little while later in the Indian innings came larceny on a scale
rarely witnessed on a cricketing field previously; with only last man
Narender Hirwani for company and India needing 24 to avoid follow-on,
Kapil Dev, after patting back the first two deliveries gently, freed
his hefty shoulders to hit off-spinner Eddie Hemmings for consecutive
sixes off the next four. It soon proved to be a very admirable
exercise in foresightedness as Hirwani promptly fell to the first ball
off the very next over.
These acts won India the hearts of the spectators, but the Test was
still destined to go England's way. With skipper Graham Gooch leading
from the front, the home team went on to inflict a 247-run defeat on
the Indians, who made a horrendous start to the match by deciding to
insert the Englishmen on a track full of runs. The error was
compounded when Indian wicket-keeper Kiran More dropped a regulation
catch when Gooch was on 36.
It was just the stroke of good fortune that the very professional and
prolific Gooch needed. He went on to pile on another 297 runs before
finally departing for 333, a 10-hour 28-minute innings studded with 43
fours and six sixes. Azhar's innings was to seem a cameo in
comparison.
Then, when England batted for a second time after securing a 199-run
lead, Gooch got among the runs yet again. His rapid 123 off just 113
balls ensured that England left themselves with ample time to bowl out
the Indians and take an early lead in the three-Test series. Gooch's
eventual match aggregate of 456 runs, which secured him the Man of the
Match award, remains the world record for the most runs scored by a
batsman in a single Test.
For more details on all the above facts check out [ StatsGuru ]
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