In the Test format, teams need excellent opening batters who can face the new ball eminently. The opening phase of an innings is crucial, where the momentum can either be set or put off track for the rest of the innings.
India, a batting powerhouse, has produced many of the greatest Test batters in its history. Among those were the likes of Sunil Gavaskar, Virender Sehwag, and Gautam Gambhir, who stamped their authority with splendid batting as openers.
Here are the top 10 Indian openers who have scored the most runs in Test cricket.
Most Runs by an Indian Opener in Tests
| Player | Innings | Runs as Opener | High Score | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunil Gavaskar | 203 | 9607 | 221 | 50.29 |
| Virender Sehwag | 168 | 8124 | 319 | 50.14 |
| Gautam Gambhir | 101 | 4119 | 206 | 42.90 |
| Murali Vijay | 100 | 3880 | 167 | 39.19 |
| KL Rahul | 100 | 3599 | 199 | 37.48 |
| Navjot Sidhu | 69 | 2911 | 201 | 42.80 |
| Rohit Sharma | 66 | 2697 | 212 | 42.80 |
| Yashasvi Jaiswal | 53 | 2511 | 214* | 49.23 |
| Shikhar Dhawan | 58 | 2315 | 190 | 40.61 |
| Pankaj Roy | 74 | 2220 | 173 | 31.71 |
Key Insights on Leading Run Scorers among Indian Test Openers
Top Run Aggregaters as Indian Test Openers
Sunil Gavaskar leads the run chart among Indian openers in the Test format. The legendary batter amassed 9607 runs in 203 innings at an impeccable average of 50.29.
Gavaskar’s batting average of 50.29 is also the highest for an Indian opener who has faced at least 1000 balls in Tests.
Virender Sehwag (50.14) is the only other opening batter to average above 50 for India in red-ball cricket.
So far, only two Indian opening batters have smashed 20-plus centuries in the longer format. Gavaskar again leads the pack with 33 hundreds, followed by Virender Sehwag with 22 tons.
Gavaskar has also struck the most fifty-plus scores as India’s opener, with 75 knocks to his name. Sehwag follows him with 51 fifty-plus scores.
Among the openers with 2000-plus Test runs, Chetan Chauhan never scored a hundred in the whites. He mustered 16 fifties but couldn’t convert a single one into a century. Chauhan did come close to a hundred on two occasions, though he lost his wicket in the nervous nineties (93 vs Pakistan, 1978 & 97 vs Australia, 1981).
Record-Breaking Milestones and Triple Centuries as Indian Test Openers
Virender Sehwag, the dashing opener, smashed two Test triple centuries while opening the innings for India. He is the lone Indian opener to do so, with his 319 being the highest score for India in Tests.
Sehwag’s two triple tons came four years apart against Pakistan (309) and South Africa (319).
He reached the 300-run mark against South Africa off 278 balls, making it the fastest triple century in Tests.
Yashasvi Jaiswal has the record for the most runs by an Indian opener in a calendar year in Tests. He scored 1478 runs at an average of 54.74 in 29 innings in 2024.
Jaiswal’s 1478 runs are the second-most by an Indian batter in a calendar year in the longest format.
Gavaskar’s Home, Away, Opponent, and Series Specific Achievements as India’s Test Opener
Gavaskar has aggregated the most runs as an Indian opener in a Test bilateral series. He scored 774 runs in eight innings on the 1971 West Indies tour.
Gavaskar’s 774 runs are, in fact, the most by a batter in a debut Test series.
Gavaskar scored 4738 of his runs in India, the most by an Indian opening batter at home in Tests. This is the fifth-most runs by an opener in home Tests.
Gavaskar accumulated the rest of his 4869 runs on away tours, the most by an Indian opener in overseas Tests. This is the second-most runs by any opening batter in overseas Tests.
Gavaskar’s 4869 runs included 18 centuries, the most by an opener in away Tests.
Gavaskar has amassed the most runs for an Indian opener against a Test team. He scored 2513 runs in 47 innings against the West Indies.
Gavaskar remains the only Indian opener to collect 2000-plus runs against three Test teams, with England (2483) and Pakistan (2074) being the other teams.
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