Scoring a century in the 4th Innings of a Test match is a challenging milestone to achieve. There are two reasons for this.
One, the pressure of Test cricket will be at its peak in this phase of the game with a target in mind and the bowling side going all out for the win.
Secondly, after three full batting innings, the wear and tear of the pitch will make batting a stiff task. Especially in Asian conditions, it is the time when the spinners will be taking control of the game.
That is why it takes the champions of batsmanship to achieve the same. Pakistan’s Younis Khan, with 5 100+ scores, has the most centuries in the 4th innings of Test cricket.
The table below will look into the players who have scored the most centuries in the 4th innings of the longer format games.
Most Centuries in 4th Innings of Tests
| PLAYER | 100 | INNS | RUNS | HS | AVERAGE | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Younis Khan (PAK) | 5 | 40 | 1465 | 171* | 50.51 | 6 |
| Sunil Gavaskar (IND) | 4 | 33 | 1398 | 221 | 58.25 | 8 |
| Ricky Ponting (AUS) | 4 | 43 | 1462 | 156 | 50.41 | 6 |
| Ramnaresh Sarwan (WI) | 4 | 36 | 1241 | 128 | 37.6 | 4 |
| Graeme Smith (ICC/SA) | 4 | 41 | 1611 | 154* | 51.96 | 9 |
| Kane Williamson (NZ) | 4 | 25 | 907 | 121* | 50.38 | 4 |
| Geoff Boycott (ENG) | 3 | 34 | 1234 | 128* | 58.76 | 7 |
| Don Bradman (AUS) | 3 | 15 | 734 | 173* | 73.4 | 4 |
| Graham Gooch (ENG) | 3 | 29 | 1121 | 133 | 44.84 | 5 |
| Gordon Greenidge (WI) | 3 | 38 | 1383 | 214* | 53.19 | 6 |
| Mahela Jayawardene (SL) | 3 | 36 | 1096 | 123 | 42.15 | 5 |
| Ben Stokes (ENG) | 3 | 30 | 1006 | 155 | 37.25 | 4 |
| Herbert Sutcliffe (ENG) | 3 | 15 | 644 | 135 | 53.66 | 1 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | 3 | 60 | 1625 | 136 | 36.93 | 7 |
Key Stats
Speaking about hundreds, only 6 batsmen have scored a double century in the 4th innings of a Test match, and two of them, Sunil Gavaskar and Gordon Greenidge, are placed on this list. However, it is George Headley’s 223 in 1930, which, to date after 90-odd years, stands tall as the highest score made by any batsman in the 4th innings of a test match.
Though Younis Khan tops the above list, only one out of his 5 4th Innings century has resulted in a Test win for Pakistan. In winning matches, it is South Africa’s Graeme Smith who tops the list, as all his 4 final innings centuries have yielded victories for his team. Ricky Ponting and Kane Williamson follow him with three 4th Innings 100s on winning causes.
Smith, along with two West Indian left-handers, Chris Gayle and Shivnarine Chanderpaul, tops the same list for most 50+ scores during this phase – 13.
Geoff Boycott, having scored at 58.76, has the best 4th innings batting average for anyone who has made more than 1000 runs at this phase of the format, followed closely by Sunil Gavaskar.
For Team India, apart from Sachin and Gavaskar in the list, the former captains Mohammed Azharuddin and Virat Kohli have 2 centuries each in the 4th innings of Test matches. Find the list of Virat Kohli Test centuries categorised by innings, country, and opponents here.
