7 Fastest Batsmen to reach 25 Test Hundreds

Test cricket, as the name suggests is by far the most testing format of cricket. All batsmen dream to play at this level and perform for their respective nations. Test cricket has a long history attached to it. Numerous masters of the game took centre stage in different eras and managed to imbibe their names into the history books forever. While scoring a Test hundred is no mean achievement, there have been several greats of the game who have done it as many as 25 times or beyond. Some of them were pretty quick to reach the milestone and thus we take a look at the seven fastest batsmen to do it. 7. Ricky Ponting Ricky Ponting. (© Getty Images) Australia’s most successful captain and one of the most prolific batsmen of the modern era, Ricky Ponting, completed this feat in 156 innings. He led a ruthless Aussie side to the pinnacle of the game for a long time. He himself led right from the front and was never shy to give the opposition a piece of his mind. He made 41 Test hundreds in his career which is the third highest of all time. He scored a massive 13,378 Test runs in his prosperous career. 6. Hashim Amla South African batsman Hashim Amla. (Photo by GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/AFP/Getty Images) He just recently scored his 25th Test after back-to-back hundreds against England. After a lean patch with the bat, he seems to have found his rhythm back after relinquishing his captaincy roles. Having a technique of his own, this South African has mesmerized the audiences with his style and panache as a batsman. He is a very respected lad given his high standards of sportsmanship. He took 155 innings to reach the milestone. Till date this elegant Protea has 7358 Test runs to his name. 5. Gary Sobers Sir Garry Sobers. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Arguably the most complete cricketer to have ever played the game, Sir Garfield Sobers was superb with the bat as well as ever versatile with the ball in hand. He was a vital member of the invincible Caribbean side in his days as his side ruled cricket for many years. He will always be remembered for being the first ever batsman to hit six sixes in as many balls. It took him just 147 innings to get his 25th Test century that too in such testing times. He got 26 tons to his name and 8032 Test runs to go with it. 4. Matthew Hayden – (Australia) Matthew Hayden. (Photo Source: AFP) The destructive opener from the land of Australia was a nightmare for any bowler even in the whites. Taking the game on its head came naturally to him. The reason the Australian side stayed on top of their game for so long had a lot to do with how ‘Haydos’ performed consistently at the top of the order. He used his long handle to good effect as he changed the dynamics of Test cricket. He reached the mark of 25 Test centuries in a mere 139 innings. His illustrious Test career included a total of 30 tons and a giant figure of 8032 runs. 3. Sunil Gavaskar – (India) Sunil Gavaskar. (© Getty Images) The original ‘Little Master’ from India was renowned for his courage as he opened against the mightiest of fast bowlers in his era. Not to forget that there were no helmets at that time. Despite that he stood up every time and with the help of sheer determination he conquered every bowler. The fact that he reached the milestone of 25 Test hundreds in just 138 innings goes on to show just how consistent he was as a batsman. This legendary figure eventually got 34 Test hundreds and 10,122 runs to show for himself. 2. Sachin Tendulkar – (India) Sachin Tendulkar. (© Getty Images) How can any list consisting of records held by batsmen be complete without the ‘Master Blaster’, Sachin Tendulkar himself. Regarded as arguably the greatest batsmen of all times, the maestro took a meagre 130 innings to get to his 25th Test ton. While it doesn’t come as a surprise, but this feat is remarkable given the amount of cricket played by him. The living legend holds the record for most Test hundreds as he got as many as 51 against his name. He also owns the record of most Test runs with 15,921 being the exact count. 1. Don Bradman – (Australia) Sir Don Bradman. (© Allsport Hulton/Archive via Getty Images) There was never going to be any question about who was heading this list. While the others mentioned are great cricketers but this guy held the image of a wizard with the bat. Having played only 59 Tests, he still managed to get 29 hundreds. As remarkable as that sounds, he also got to the mark of 25 hundreds in a modest 68 innings. His record of a staggering batting average of 99.94 is next to impossible for someone to surpass. Sir Donald Bradman had 6996 runs at the end of his career. Also stats updated till 28th Jan 2016. Also read: Top 10 most consecutive matches played by captains in ODIs