It all started with a cricket stump and a golf ball at his home’s backyard.
Sir Donald Bradman, the Boy from Bowral, went onto score single-handedly almost 26% of his team’s total runs, during his 20 years long cricketing career.
According to former Australian Captain, Bill Woodfull, he was worth 3 batsmen to Australia!
Bradman, to be honest, had an insane cricketing career with the statistics, unthinkable.
He scored a total of 6996 runs in 80 Test innings at an average of 99.94 including 29 centuries.
In first-class cricket, Bradman had accumulated a total of 28,067 runs at an average of 95.15, with a top score of 452 not out.
Here is my effort to list Don Bradman’s 5 insane cricket records, that are still unbeatable after 70 years of his retirement.
1. Don Bradman’s peerless Test Batting Average
Don Bradman was averaging 101.39 then when he walked into bat one last time in his Test career at Oval.
In his 2nd delivery of that Innings, Bradman misjudged a googly from the England spinner – Eric Hollies and bowled out for a duck.
Followed by England’s innings defeat in that match, Bradman had never chanced to bat again.
With that duck in his final innings, Bradman’s average dropped to 99.94, which could have been a fancied 3-digits, if he had managed to score just 4 more runs in his career.
Still, the number 99.94 stays as the highest batting average in Test Cricket till now.
In fact, no cricketer who has played a minimum of 50 Test matches has more than 60 in Test batting averages.
The fab 4 of the current generation players who have the highest Test batting averages are:
- Steve Smith – 58.6
- Virat Kohli – 49.3
- Joe Root – 50.3
- Kane Williamson – 54.9
Seeing these numbers, I don’t see any harm to Bradman’s numbers.
It looked like he had never believed in the law of Averages in Test Cricket throughout his career.
2. The fondness for Daddy Hundreds
Sir Donald Bradman had scored 12 200+ Scores in Test Cricket, a cricket record for the Most double centuries scored by any batsman in Test cricket, till now.
Bradman also had 2 Triple Centuries to his name, which is still the equal best for Most Triple Centuries in Test Cricket.
He shares this record with Chris Gayle & Brian Lara of West Indies and Virender Sehwag of India. All these batsmen have 2 300s in Tests.
Bradman was the first to score 2 300s in Tests! Check here everything you should know about triple centuries in Tests, and how Don Bradman plays a huge part in it.
He also had a 299 not out score once against South Africa. (the Only batsman to do so)
He also holds the record for scoring the most 200+ scores in a Test series – 3 vs England in 1930.
Bradman converted 36.26% of his Test innings into century innings & 15% into double centuries (Best in the World)
He also had a conversion ratio of 69% when making 50s into 100s and 26% of his 100s to 200s. (Once again, the best)
Check this tweet!
3. Highest Test Batter Rating ever!
Till date, only once, a batsman has passed the 950 mark in ICC’s Test batting rating points and it is Don Bradman.
Bradman’s highest of 961 points is still the best ever rating points taken by any batsman in Test cricket.
Steve Smith, the Australian batsman, came close until 947 before he was banned for a year on the Sandpaper issue.
Virat Kohli, the Indian cricketer came near 930 and he was one of the very few batsmen, to almost reach Bradman’s rating points.
Still one needs utmost consistency and superior performance against the better teams to run high.
Here is How ICC rating points are calculated and the list of 5 batsmen who have reached 900+ rating points in both Test and ODI.
4. Most Runs in a Day of Test Cricket
When I checked out the top 50 innings with the Most runs in a single day of Test Cricket, Don Bradman’s name came out 6 times in that list.
Also, his score of 309* in the 1st day of 1930 Leeds Test vs England, is the only 300+ score achieved by a batsman in a single day of Test cricket.
Thereby the highest score in a single day of Test cricket ever!
He had scored 200+ scores in a single day of Test cricket, six times in his career.
Moreover, he also holds the record for scoring century in a single session of a Test match most times – 6. (once pre-lunch, twice lunch-tea, three times tea-stumps)
5. The Real Hero of the Ashes
Don Bradman played most of his career time against England in the Ashes.
That is, out of the 80 International Test innings he played, he batted against England in Ashes 63 times, which is 79% of his career innings.
He had played 37 Test matches (All in Ashes) against England out of his entire 52 Test matches.
On that account, he had scored a massive total of 5028 runs against England. (72% of his total runs)
Thereby, holds the record for the Most Runs against a Single team in Test Cricket & the only batsmen to score 5000+ Test runs against a single opponent.
And in Ashes, Bradman holds the records for
- Most Runs in Ashes: 5028
- Most Centuries in Ashes: 19
- Highest Average in Ashes: 89.79
- Most Runs in a single Ashes Tournament: 974 in 5 Tests (1930)
Here you will find all you need to know about Ashes records!
Wrapping it up:
It is important to note that Bradman was off to War-duty in between his cricketing days. And thereby didn’t play a single match in the years of 1940-1945.
Also, he had experienced life-threatening injuries more than once in his career.
Imagine what would have been his numbers, if things were more supportive.
Apart from England, Bradman played against India, West Indies & South Africa in 1 Test series each, in which he played 5 Test Matches against them.
Bradman averages 178.75 against India and 201.50 against South Africa, which is the highest individual batting average in Test cricket in a single Test series.
Don Bradman’s cricket records might get beaten one day but the way he dominated his opponent could never be reiterated by any batsman!
Thanks for Reading!
