Smallest Win Margins by Runs in Test Cricket

Smallest Win Margin in Test Cricket

Key Insights on Smallest Margin Test Match Victories

Narrowest Winning Margins (1-Run Wins in Test Cricket)

The West Indies and New Zealand have recorded the joint-smallest win margins in Tests, defeating Australia in 1993 and England in 2023 by one run, respectively.

New Zealand’s victory was special, as they won after being asked to follow on by England. This is only the fourth instance of a team winning a Test match after a follow-on.

Successfully Defended Low Totals in Test Wins

Australia won by seven runs while defending 85 runs against England at The Oval in 1882. This is the lowest total successfully defended by a team in a Test match.

There is one more instance of a Test team defending a total below 100. And it belongs to the West Indies, as they defended 99 against Zimbabwe to win the Port of Spain Test by 35 runs in 2000.

The 1882 Oval Test was a low-scoring affair, with Australia and England accumulating 363 runs, the sixth-lowest match aggregate in Test cricket.

England’s Record of Victories After Following On

England, meanwhile, have registered two Test victories after following on, both against Australia, with win margins below 20 runs.

First, they defeated the Aussies by 10 runs in the 1894 Sydney Test, while they scripted an 18-run victory in the 1981 Leeds Test.

There are over 60 instances of teams winning Test matches by 35 or fewer runs. 20 of those instances belong to England, the most by a team in Tests.

Team Records for Narrow Margin Losses

Australia, meanwhile, have lost the most matches by 35 or fewer runs in Tests, with 18 instances to their name.

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