Top 5 run-getters for England in tests

As Alastair Cook recently reached the 10 K feat in tests during the second test of the ongoing Investec Series v Sri Lanka, he is now not only the England’s leading run scorer in tests but also the first Englishman to reach the 10000 runs milestone. Here, we take a look at the top 5 run-getters for England in tests.

Ten thousand and still going strong. The England captain leads the pack, as he just crossed the ten thousand mark on the second test of the ongoing Investec Series against Sri Lanka. He becomes the youngest batsman to reach the milestone and breaks Tendulkar’s 11-year old record. He features at the twelfth spot in the all time test run-getters. Making the test debut back in 2006, Cook has never looked back and has hardly had a rough patch. Test cap “630” has scored 28 test centuries till date, with three double centuries and a top score of 294 to go with it. He has scored over 2000 runs against arch rivals Australia. He, surprisingly, has a better test average away (49.31) than home (43.43).

From getting a pair on debut, to be the second highest run-scorer for England in tests, Gooch had a roller-coaster ride throughout his career span of two decades. He played in the era of domination by the West Indies, against whom his mid-forties batting average is regarded as extremely creditable. His remarkable innings of 333 against India at Lord’s is the third highest for England in tests. He remained out of action for three years after being banned for the controversial 1982 South African rebel tour. In the years to follow, Gooch has also played the part of being England’s batting coach. He is the highest run-getter at Lord’s. After playing 118 tests, he decided to retire at the age of forty-two. He was inducted into ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in 2009.

The right-handed batsman-wicket-keeper is the most capped player for England in tests. In his 133 tests appearances for England, Stewart crossed the hundred runs mark 15 times and has a top score of 190 which came against Pakistan in the 1992 Edgbaston test. Initially, he was a specialist opening batsman for England. It was only after the retirement of Jack Russell, then full-time wicket-keeper, that Stewart was the unrivalled wicket-keeper for the English team. He captained England for a short period after Atherton’s resignation and until Nasser Hussain’s appointment. He became the fourth player to score a hundred in the 100 test match against the West Indies at Old Trafford in 2000.

The left-handed batsman is regarded as one of the most stylish of his era. He made his debut in 1978 against Pakistan and also played his last test against them. Gower became the captain of England team in the 1980s. He led the England team to victory in 1985 Ashes. Having played 117 tests, he was one of the most capped England players. He holds the record for 119 consecutive test innings without a duck. He scored 18 tons during the span of his 14- year long test career including a top score of  215. He received the Wisden Cricketer of the year award soon after his debut, in 1979. He was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in 2009. Following his retirement, he became a regular commentator for Sky Sports.

Among all the top five run scorers, the right–handed England batsman has the best average of 47.28. In his 104 tests for England, the South-Africa born batsman has scored 23 centuries. His innings of 227 against Australia in the second test of  2010-11 Ashes is his career best. He holds the record of the second-highest-run total from his first 25 tests. On his test debut on 31 July 2005, he top scored in both the innings and is only the fourth Englishman to do so. He reached a remarkable feat by scoring 5,000 test runs in the fastest time, taking 4 years and 243 days to do so. He led the England team in three tests between 4th August 2008 to 7th January 2009 but resigned after a dispute with the England coach Peter Moores.  Meanwhile, KP is looking for a comeback to test cricket through his birth nation, South Africa.