The player coming in to bat at number three, just after the dismissal of an opener, always carries importance in any batting line-up.
Sometimes the team’s fate in a match depends on the one-down batter’s performance because the position can be the rock and the wall, which could save them from a failed start and leads them to a winning total.
Here in this article, we will be getting to know about the top 10 highest score by a number 3 batter in Test cricket.
Highest Individual Scores by No. 3 Batters in Tests
| Player | Score (Balls) | Against | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Lara (WI) | 400* (582) | England | St John’s | 10 Apr 2004 |
| Brian Lara (WI) | 375 (538) | England | St John’s | 16 Apr 1994 |
| Wiaan Mulder (SA) | 367* (334) | Zimbabwe | Bulawayo | 6 Jul 2025 |
| Sir Garry Sobers (WI) | 365* (-) | Pakistan | Kingston | 26 Feb 1958 |
| Wally Hammond (ENG) | 336* (-) | New Zealand | Auckland | 31 Mar 1933 |
| Don Bradman (AUS) | 334 (448) | England | Leeds | 11 Jul 1930 |
| Kumar Sangakkara (SL) | 319 (482) | Bangladesh | Chattogram | 4 Feb 2014 |
| Younis Khan (PAK) | 313 (568) | Sri Lanka | Karachi | 21 Feb 2009 |
| Hashim Amla (SA) | 311* (529) | England | The Oval | 19 Jul 2012 |
| Don Bradman (AUS) | 299* (-) | South Africa | Adelaide | 29 Jan 1932 |
Key Insights
Brian Lara is right at the top with his unbeaten 400 and 375 against England at St John’s ten years apart. His 400 is also the highest score by a batter in all Tests.
Lara’s 400 is also the highest score by a captain at No. 3 in Tests. Wiaan Mulder (367*) and Younis Khan (313) are the other two skippers to score Test triple centuries at No. 3.
Mulder’s unbeaten 367 is the highest score by a batter on his Test captaincy debut, irrespective of the batting position. The previous record belonged to Graham Dowling, who scored 239 as an opener against India in 1968.
49 fours smashed by Mulder in his 367-run effort are the most by a No. 3 batter in a Test innings.
Kusal Mendis smashed the most sixes in an innings by a No. 3 batter. He hit 11 maximums in his 245-run effort against Ireland in the 2023 Galle Test.
Jacques Rudolf smashed the highest score by a debutant at No. 3 in Tests. The former South African aggregated an unbeaten 222 against Bangladesh in the 2003 Chattogram Test.
West Indies’ Lawrence Rowe (214 vs NZ) and New Zealand’s Mathew Sinclair (214 vs WI) are the other debutants to score double centuries at No. 3.
Kumar Sangakkara is the only wicketkeeper to score a Test double century at No. 3. The former Sri Lankan keeper scored a 230-run knock against Pakistan in the 2002 Lahore Test.
In fact, Sangakkara smashed seven Test centuries at No. 3, the most by a keeper-batter. The left-hander even leads the overall chart with 37 Test hundreds as a No. 3 batter.
Sangakkara converted 11 of his 37 centuries into double hundreds, the most by a No. 3 batter and, overall, the second-most in Tests.
19 of Ricky Ponting’s centuries came at No. 3 as a captain. This is the most hundreds by a Test captain in that position. In all, Ponting aggregated 32 hundreds at No. 3.
Kane Williamson (11) and Don Bradman (10) are the other skippers with 10 or more centuries at the No. 3 position.
Ponting has recorded the highest score by a No. 3 batter in a Test loss. Despite his brave 242, Australia lost the 2003 Adelaide Test against India by four wickets.
56 balls Viv Richards needed to complete his century against England in the 1986 St John’s Test. This is the fastest Test hundred by a No. 3 batter.
Richards had a strike rate of 189.65 while aggregating an unbeaten 110 off 58 balls, the highest for a No. 3 batter in a Test innings (minimum 100 runs). No other No. 3 centurion has struck above 120.
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