Best individual scores by batting position in Tests

Test cricket has witnessed many magnificent innings by great batsmen and bowlers alike. Some of these innings are part of cricket’s folklore and have set a benchmark for batsmanship. These incredible knocks entertained the fans and also elevated the game to another level. Here is a look at the best individual scores by batting position in Test cricket. Opener: Matthew Hayden (Australia) – 380: Matthew Hayden. (© Getty Images) Matthew Hayden holds the record for the highest individual score for Australia in Test cricket by scoring 380 at Perth against Zimbabwe in October 2003. It was also the highest individual score in Test Cricket at that time. Hayden’s 380 came in 437 balls including 37 fours and 11 sixes. After posting 735/6 in the first innings of the match, the Aussies won the match by an innings and 175 runs. No. 3: Brian Lara (West Indies) – 400*: Brian Lara. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Brian Lara scored the highest individual total for West Indies during his quadruple century against England at St John’s in April 2004 is also the highest individual score in the Test history. His innings of an unbeaten 400 came in 582 balls with the help of 43 fours and 4 sixes. The Windies piled up 751/5 in their first innings and England had to bat twice in succession to save the match. No. 4: Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka) – 374: (Photo Source: Getty Images) In the first Test against South Africa in 2006 at Colombo, Sri Lanka was struggling at 14/2 in reply to South Africa’s score of 169 in the first innings. Kumar Sangakkara and skipper Mahela Jayawardene put on 624 runs on the board for the third wicket, a world record for any wicket which is very unlikely to be broken. Mahela scored a magnificent 374 (43×4, 1×6) and Sri Lanka went on to win the match by an innings and 153 runs. No. 5: Michael Clarke (Australia) – 329*: Michael Clarke. (Photo Source: Getty Images) In reply to India’s 191 the Australians was reeling at 37/3 at the SCG in January 2012 in the second Test of the 4-match series. Clarke and former captain Ricky Ponting steadied the ship and took their team to safety. Skipper Clarke eventually remained unbeaten on 329* after helping his team post 659/4. This proved enough as the home team won the match an innings and 68 runs. No. 6: Ben Stokes (England) – 258: (Photo Source: Getty Images) After winning the first Test of the ongoing away series against South Africa, England managed to hang onto a draw in the second one after a dramatic final day at Newlands. Ben Stokes’ destructive knock was one of the highlights of the match producing 258 from 198 balls with 30 fours and 11 sixes in his team’s first innings. It helped his team post a total of 629/6 before the declaration. No. 7: Sir Don Bradman (Australia) – 270: Sir Don Bradman. (© Allsport Hulton/Archive via Getty Images) In the third Test of the 1936-37 Ashes in Melbourne against England, Sir Don batted at number 7 in the home side’s second innings and made marvelous 270. After Australia posted 200 in the first innings, the visitors were bundled out for 76 however, they fought back to reduce the home team to 71/5 in its second innings before the great man stepped up to stamp his class and authority. A target of 689 was always going to be difficult and England lost the match by 365 runs. No. 8: Wasim Akram (Pakistan) – 257*: Wasim Akram. (Photo Source: ESPNcricinfo Ltd) Zimbabwe had posted a decent total of 375 against Pakistan in Sheikhupura in October 1996 in their first innings. In reply, the home team was struggling at 183/6 when their captain Wasim Akram walked in. Akram played aggressively and was involved with Saqlain Mushtaq in a 313-run partnership for the eighth wicket. He went on to hit an unbeaten 257 off 363 balls as Pakistan finished with a total of 553. His amazing knock included 22 fours and 12 sixes. No. 9. Ian Smith (New Zealand) – 173: New Zealand wicketkeeper Ian Smith. (Photo by David Munden/Popperfoto/Getty Images) Former player turned sporting commentator, Ian Smith played as a wicketkeeper for New Zealand throughout the 1980s and part of the 1990s. His career-best in Tests is a world record for a number 9 batsman. He made 173 off 136 balls against India at Eden Park, Auckland in February 1990. The final match of the 3-match series was a high scoring draw. Though, it ensured a 1-0 series win for the Kiwis. No. 10: Walter Read (England) – 173: Sport, Cricket, Circa 1895, Walter William Read, Surrey, (1873-1897) and England, (1882-1893), Read was one of the finest batsman in England, he scored 1,000 runs in a season nine times and a top score of 338 for Surrey v Oxford Univesity in 1880, He captained England in 2 Tests (Photo by Bob Thomas/Popperfoto/Getty Images) The Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1893, England’s Walter Read was one of the finest batsmen of his generation and played 18 Tests for his country two of which were as a skipper. He became the first number 10 to score a hundred in Test cricket when he made 117 against Australia at The Oval in 1884. His match-saving innings remains the highest score by a No. 10 in Tests. He reached his century in 113 minutes with 36 boundary scoring strokes. Read was later reported to be furious at being held down so low in the order. His highest score in first-class cricket was 338 for Surrey. No. 11: Ashton Agar (Australia) – 98: Australia’s Ashton Agar. (Photo by CARL COURT/AFP/Getty Images) Ashton Agar made a memorable debut in the first Ashes Test at Trent Bridge in 2013. Coming in at Number 11 with Australia reeling at 117 for 9, Agar struck an astonishing 98, playing strokes that top-order batsmen would be proud of. He missed his hundred by a whisker, but didn’t let that dampen his mood, as he picked up Alastair Cook as his maiden victim, thus becoming the first teenaged Australian spinner to take a Test wicket. The home team though, won the intensely fought match by just 14 runs. All stats updated till 16th Jan 2016.