Playing a single Test for the country is considered a big achievement for a cricketer and if you a professional player, they would their lifelong dream play at least single Test. But not all have had the opportunity to represent at the highest level and this includes some of the finest talents, who have tried their trade in the game.
With all being said, if playing a single Test match is a dream for many, we have had players who have put on the whites for their countries for decades. These players need to be celebrated as one needs skills, dedication, endurance, and motivation to sustain in this sport. There is nothing like playing in front of your home crowd and in known conditions.
So, in this article, we will talk about players who have most Tests in a single country and this would invariably their home.
Most Tests by a Player in a Country
| Player | Country | Matches | Runs | Batting Average | Wickets | Bowling Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Anderson (ENG) | England | 106 | 809 | 10.37 | 438 | 24.41 |
| Stuart Broad (ENG) | England | 98 | 2495 | 21.50 | 398 | 25.92 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | India | 94 | 7216 | 52.67 | 16 | 68.75 |
| Ricky Ponting (AUS) | Australia | 92 | 7578 | 56.97 | 2 | 59.00 |
| Alastair Cook (ENG) | England | 89 | 6568 | 44.37 | 1 | 7.00 |
| Steve Waugh (AUS) | Australia | 89 | 5710 | 47.58 | 58 | 33.56 |
| Jacques Kallis (SA) | South Africa | 88 | 7035 | 56.73 | 165 | 30.61 |
| Allan Border (AUS) | Australia | 86 | 5743 | 45.94 | 19 | 40.47 |
| Shivnarine Chanderpaul (WI) | West Indies | 81 | 6187 | 58.36 | 4 | 138.50 |
| Mahela Jayawardene (SL) | Sri Lanka | 81 | 7167 | 59.72 | 4 | 41.75 |
Key Stats
13 – Number of players to have played 75 or more Test at their home country. Apart from these 10 cricketers, Joe Root (78), Mark Boucher (75), and Kumar Sangakkara (75) are others to do so.
106 – James Anderson holds the record of playing most number of Tests at home and the pacer is the only cricketer to have played over 100 matches at home. Find out here the astonishing list of records James Anderson hold in international cricket.
7578 – This is the highest tally by a batter playing at home and Ricky Ponting holds the record, scoring these runs at an average of just under 57. Sachin Tendulkar, the Indian record holder for most runs at home, comes in next with 7216 runs followed by Mahela Jayawardene who has scored 7167 runs.
23 – These are the most number of centuries by a batsmen at home and three players have achieved that namely, Ponting, Jayawardene and Kallis. They are followed by Tendulkar and Sangakkara who scored 22 tons each at their respective home.
493 – Sri Lanka’s Muthiah Muralidaran holds the record of taking the most wickets at home. He has played 73 Tests in Sri Lanka, taking 493 wickets at an average of 19.56 with 45 five-wicket hauls. James Anderson comes in second with 438 wickets at an average of 24.41 in 106 games, followed by his teammate Stuart Board who has taken 398 wickets.
You can find out the top ten batters and bowlers with the highest batting average and bowling average at home conditions here.
