10 cricketers to bat on all five days of a Test
Only ten times in nearly 140 years of Test match cricket has a single batsman batted on all five days of the same Test match. Rain, teams hoping to draw, or simply bad luck in general all play a role.
Here’s the list of batsmen to have batted on all five days of a Test match:
- ML Jaisimha vs Australia, 1960
The elegant Hyderabad cricketer ML Jaisimha impacted players like Mohd. Azharuddin and VVS Laxman. He was the first cricketer to accomplish this feat, which achieved against Australia at Eden Gardens. On Day 1, he batted at number nine. On Day 2, India were all out for 194 runs, with Jaisimha not out for 20.
Australia responded with 331 runs, and he came in to bat at number four this time before the conclusion of Day 3. He batted the entire fourth day before being removed for 74 at the start of the day five.
- Sir Geoffrey Boycott vs Australia, 1977
Geoffrey Boycott was well-known for his defensive batting technique. As a result, it's no surprise that he's on this list. Boycott batted towards the conclusion of Day 1 of a Test against Australia and was removed on the morning of Day 3 with a score of 107 from 315 deliveries. England were given a goal of 189 runs, and he stepped in late on Day 4. On Day 5, he scored 80* and led England to victory.
- Kim Hughes vs England, 1980
Lord's hosted a one-off Test Match. Hughes scored 47 runs on Day 1 and just 35 on Day 2 due to rain for the bulk of the day. He was eliminated on Day 3 after scoring 117 runs. He stepped out to bat again on Day 4 and batted till he was removed for 84 runs on the last day of the game.
- Allan Lamb vs West Indies, 1984
Lamb became the second English batsman after Boycott to bat on all five days at Lord's. Over the first two days, he scored 23 runs off 77 balls. His knock in the second innings began at the end of Day 3 and concluded at 110 on the morning of Day 5. This hit was delivered to the likes of Malcolm Marshall and Joel Garner.
- Ravi Shastri vs England, 1984
Ravi Shastri, India's current head coach, was the second Indian to accomplish this achievement. India batted for 200 overs over four days in a rain-affected match, reaching 437/7, with Shastri batting on all four days. He then drew the match the next day with a strong 7 off 59 balls in the second innings.
- Adrian Griffith vs New Zealand, 1999
Griffith, a gifted left-hander, joined this one-of-a-kind club in Hamilton. He was removed on Day 2 after scoring 114 runs in the first innings. He stepped into bat at the close of Day 3 after New Zealand responded with 393 runs. Day 4 was hampered by weather, and he only went out for 18 runs on the last day of the Test.
- Andrew Flintoff vs India, 2006
Given his explosiveness with the bat, Flintoff is a surprising inclusion on this list. In Mohali, he made this record. England batted for 103 overs in three days despite rain. In the first two innings, Flintoff scored 70 runs. In the second innings, he scored another half-century, this time 16 on Day 4 and 35 on Day 5.
- Alviro Peterson vs New Zealand, 2012
Formerly known as South Africa Alviro Peterson is the only South African to have this unusual record. Peterson achieved a flawless 156 in three days at Wellington. He and Graeme Smith batted together in the second innings. The next morning, he was run-out for 39 runs as the match concluded in a tie.
- Cheteshwar Pujara vs Sri Lanka, 2017
Cheteshwar Pujara, India's Test specialist, appears to be a familiar name on this list. His half-century in the first inning was extended across three days due to rain on the first two days. At the end of the fourth day, he batted in the second innings. On the final day of the Test, he was out for 22 runs.
- Rory Burns vs Australia, 2019
Burns batted towards the conclusion of day one of the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston. He stayed for the entire second day and scored a century. On the third day, he was removed for 133 runs. At the end of Day 4, he had to bat once more. On the morning of the final day, however, he was expelled with a pathetic score of 11.
