Most Test runs in a calendar year: List of cricketers with most runs in a year in Test cricket

Dixit Bhargav | 28/12/2021
Most Test runs in a calendar year: List of cricketers with most runs in a year in Test cricket

Most Test runs in a calendar year: The English captain missed a rare world record by 81 runs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground today.

It was on the fourth delivery of the 25th over of England’s second innings of the third Ashes 2021-22 Test in Melbourne when England captain Joe Root edged a Scott Boland delivery to David Warner to first slip to become the seventh English batter to be dismissed in a dismal batting collapse.

Root, whose 28 (59) made him England’s highest run-scorer for the umpteenth time this year, had little impact on saving the match for his team as they were bowled out for 68 in 27.4 overs to lose by an innings and 14 runs.

In what is England’s third loss in a row, they have now lost all possibilities of regaining the Ashes. Considering the utter disappointing manner in which they’ve played on this tour, saving a 0-5 whitewash would be some achievement for Root and his men.

On a personal note, this match puts and end to an splendid batting year for the 30-year old player. In 15 Tests this year, Root has amassed 1,708 runs at an average of 61 including six centuries and four half-centuries to become England’s highest run-scorer by a substantial margin.

Most Test runs in a calendar year

It is worth mentioning that Root has achieved the third rank in the list of most Test runs in a calendar year. As far as Top 50 in the same list are concerned, Root features thrice now as he had also scored 1,477 runs in 2016 (17 Tests) and 1,385 runs in 2015 (14 Tests).

Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Yousuf (1,788) and former West Indies captain Sir Vivian Richards (1,710) are the only two players ahead of Root in this list.

Rank Batter Year Matches Runs Highest Average 100 50
1 Mohammad Yousuf (PAK) 2006 11 1,788 202 99.33 9 3
2 Viv Richards (WI) 1976 11 1,710 291 90 7 5
3 Joe Root (ENG) 2021 15 1,708 228 61 6 4
4 Graeme Smith (SA) 2008 15 1,656 232 72 6 6
5 Michael Clarke (AUS) 2012 11 1,595 329* 106.33 5 3
6 Sachin Tendulkar (IND) 2010 14 1,562 214 78.1 7 5
7 Sunil Gavaskar (IND) 1979 18 1,555 221 59.8 5 8
8 Ricky Ponting (AUS) 2005 15 1,544 207 67.13 6 6
9 Ricky Ponting (AUS) 2003 11 1,503 257 100.2 6 4
10 Kumar Sangakkara (SL) 2014 12 1,493 319 71.09 4 9
Post Edited By: Dixit Bhargav
Ashes Australia England Joe Root

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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