The Test format is the pinnacle of the gentleman’s game, cricket, which comes with its challenges that players need to adapt to. Some players embrace these challenges with courage and dedication, staying on the crease for a longer time and reaching monumental scores.
One fine example of this is Brian Lara, who kept on batting and amassed a staggering 400* runs. So, in this article, we’ll look at the top 10 highest individual scores in Test cricket.
Highest Individual Scores in Test Cricket
| Player | Score (Balls) | Against | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Lara (WI) | 400* (582) | England | St John’s | 10 Apr 2004 |
| Matthew Hayden (AUS) | 380 (437) | Zimbabwe | Perth | 09 Oct 2003 |
| Brian Lara (WI) | 375 (538) | England | St John’s | 16 Apr 1994 |
| Mahela Jayawardene (SL) | 374 (572) | South Africa | Colombo (SSC) | 27 Jul 2006 |
| Wiaan Mulder (SA) | 367* (334) | Zimbabwe | Bulawayo | 06 Jul 2025 |
| Garry Sobers (WI) | 365* (NA) | Pakistan | Kingston | 26 Feb 1958 |
| Leonard Hutton (ENG) | 364 (847) | Australia | The Oval | 20 Aug 1938 |
| Sanath Jayasuriya (SL) | 340 (578) | India | Colombo (RPS) | 02 Aug 1997 |
| Hanif Mohammad (PAK) | 337 (NA) | West Indies | Bridgetown | 17 Jan 1958 |
| Wally Hammond (ENG) | 336* (NA) | New Zealand | Auckland | 31 Mar 1933 |
Key Insights on Highest Individual Scores in Test Cricket
All-Time Highest Test Scores
Brian Lara holds the record for the highest individual score in Test cricket. The former West Indies batter smashed an unbeaten 400 against England in the 2004 St John’s Test.
Lara’s unbeaten 400 is also the highest individual score by a captain in Tests.
Lara has also struck the highest individual score in first-class cricket. He aggregated an unbeaten 501 for Warwickshire against Durham in the 1994 County Championship.
Matthew Hayden’s 380 against Zimbabwe in the 2003 Perth Test is the highest score by an opener in Tests.
Wiaan Mulder’s unbeaten 367 against Zimbabwe in 2025 is the highest individual score by a batter in an away Test.
Triple Century and Age-related Test Records
England’s Andy Sandham became the first batter to hit a triple century in Test cricket. Sandham scored 325 runs against the West Indies at Kingston in April 1930, in what was his career’s last Test match.
Sandham was 39 years and 271 days, making him the oldest triple centurion in Tests.
The West Indies Garry Sobers, on the other hand, is the youngest batter to score a Test triple hundred at the age of 21 years and 213 days. Sobers scored an unbeaten 365* against Pakistan in 1958.
Virender Sehwag has hammered the fastest Test triple hundred off just 278 balls against South Africa in the 2008 Chennai Test.
England’s John Edrich smashed 52 fours in his unbeaten 310 against New Zealand in the 1965 Leeds Test. This is the most fours by a batter in a Test innings.
Pakistan’s Wasim Akram (257* vs ZIM, 1996) and India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal (214* vs ENG, 2024) have scored the most sixes in a Test innings, having struck 12 each.
Highest Test Score in Defeat and by Role
Ricky Ponting has recorded the highest individual score in a losing cause in Tests. His 242 in the 2003 Adelaide Test went in vain as India won the match by four wickets.
Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower has registered the highest individual score as a wicketkeeper in Tests. He scored an unbeaten 232 against India in the 2000 Nagpur Test.
Double Century Test Records
Legendary Don Bradman has struck the most double centuries in Tests, with 12 knocks to his name.
Bradman converted two of his 12 double centuries into triple hundreds, the joint-most by a batter, along with Lara, Sehwag and Chris Gayle.
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