Top 10 Players with Most Runs in a Single Test Series in Cricket History

Most runs in a Test series by players

Here are the players who put up incredible performances and single-handedly won the series for their respective countries. Today, on this list, we look at great Test cricketers like Sir Don Bradman, Viv Richards, Garry Sobers, Wally Hammond, and Brian Lara.

10. Brain Lara (WI)

It is inconceivable that the name of Brian Lara, the legendary batsman from the West Indies, is not included in any batting record book of Test cricket. The kind of records he has given to Test cricket, even today, it seems impossible to break them. His outstanding performances throughout his worldwide career earned the left-handed batsman great respect. Lara's best performance was during England's tour of the West Indies in 1993-94. In this series, Lara scored 798 runs in eight innings out of the five matches played, with an average of over 99. Apart from the biggest score of the series was 375 runs. Moreover, he scored 2 brilliant centuries and 2 half-centuries as well in this series. After Brian Lara's outstanding performance, West Indies won this 5 match series 3-1.

9. Sir Donald Bradman (AUS)

The kind of performance every test batter wants to be at least once in his career, Sir Don Bradman gave such a performance thrice, due to which he is coming for the third time in this list. The best game that Sir Don Bradman had demonstrated was in the Ashes Series of 1930, he did something similar the next year during South Africa's tour to Australia. In this series, Bradman scored 806 runs in five innings out of the five matches played, in which his average was over 201. Apart from this, his highest score in the series was 299* runs. Moreover, he scored 4 brilliant centuries as well in this series. In this series, he gave the third-best performance of his career, due to which Australia whitewashed South Africa in 5 five-match series by 5-0.

8. Sir Donald Bradman (AUS)

Sir Don Bradman is called the greatest batsman of Test cricket, not only because of a couple of records. There is no batting test record left in which his name does not appear. He has got his name registered in every record book with his batting. He was seen giving his peak performance throughout his career. It is very difficult to know at what point he went out of form. The way he played in the Ashes in 1930 was similar to the way he did in the Ashes of 1936 when England toured Australia. In this series, he scored a total of 810 runs in 9 innings of five matches, in which his highest score was 270. Not only this, he also scored 2 brilliant centuries and a half-century as well. Overall, his batting average in this series was 90. In this series, he gave the second-best performance of his career, due to which Australia managed to win this 5 match series by 3-2.

7. Sir Garry Sobers (WI)

Sir Garry Sobers was one of Test cricket's greatest players. His performance helped raise the level of not just West Indies but world cricket as well. His excellent batting average is enough to introduce his amazing game. Along with his batting style, his dominance was also tremendous in bowling, due to which he helped the West Indies win many matches. The best series of his career was against Pakistan in 1957-58, when Pakistan toured the West Indies. In this series, he scored a total of 824 runs in 8 innings of five matches, in which his highest score was 365*, which was also the highest score of his career. Not only this, he also scored 3 brilliant centuries and three half-centuries as well. Overall, his batting average in this series was above 137. Due to his historic performance, the West Indies easily won this 5 match series by 3-1.

6. Clyde Walcott (WI)

Sir Clyde Walcott was a great player from the 1950s. Today's generation may not recognise him, but what he did for the West Indies in that era is still remembered. His international test and first-class batting average show his greatness, which is above 56. The best series of his career was against Australia in 1955, when Australia toured the West Indies. In this series, he scored a total of 827 runs in 10 innings of five matches, in which his highest score was 155. Not only this, he also scored five brilliant centuries, while he scored two half-centuries. Overall, his batting average in this series was above 82. However, despite such an excellent performance, the rest of the players of their team could not do much good in this series, and West Indies lost this 5 match series by 3-0. But his performance in this series is still commendable.

5. Viv Richards (WI)

Viv Richards, one of the greatest players of world cricket and the West Indies, is always known for his excellent batting style even today. He was a very aggressive player of his era, in front of whom even bowlers were hesitant to bowl. It was his batting style that helped the West Indies win many one-sided matches. The most memorable series for him was during the West Indies tour of England in 1976. In this series, Richards scored 829 runs in seven innings out of the four matches played, in which his average was over 118. Apart from this, his highest score in the series was 291 runs, which was also the highest score of his career. Moreover, he scored 2 half-centuries and 3 brilliant centuries as well in this series. Due to his excellent performance, the West Indies won the 5 match series by 3-0.

4. Robert Neil Harvey (AUS)

Neil Harvey was a brilliant left-handed batter who was known for his aggressive batting. He had shown excellent performance in first-class cricket and later repeated it in international cricket as well. He gave a great performance against South Africa during South Africa's tour of Australia in 1952-53. In this series, Harvey scored 834 runs in nine innings out of the five matches played, in which his average was over 92. Apart from this, his highest score in the series was 205 runs. Moreover, he scored 3 half-centuries and 4 brilliant centuries as well in this series. However, despite his excellent performance, the five-match series was drawn 2–2.

3. Mark Taylor (AUS)

Another player who performed well in the Ashes is Mark Taylor. The best series for him was the Ashes in 1989, during Australia's tour of England. Batting brilliantly in this series, Taylor scored 839 runs in 11 innings of 6 matches, in which his highest score was 219 runs. Apart from this, he batted with an excellent average of above 83. In the same series, he scored 5 half-centuries and two brilliant centuries. His excellent batting throughout the series helped Australia win the series by 4-0. But the kind of performance he gave in the series is remembered till now.

2. Wally Hammond (ENG)

The kind of brilliant batting that Don Bradman did for Australia was similar to what Wally Hammond did for England. The best series of Hammond's career was also the Ashes, which he played against Australia in 1928-29. In this series, Hammond made 905 runs in nine innings out of the five matches played, in which his average was over 113. Apart from this, his highest score in the series was 251 runs, smashing 4 centuries as well. After Hammond's historic performance, England won the series by 4-1. However, Don Bradman broke Hammond's record for the highest individual score in a series two years later. However, after Bradman, no one has come close to his record to date.

1. Sir Donald Bradman (AUS)

The greatness of Sir Don Bradman is clearly visible from his statistics as well as his performance in Test cricket. Even today, no player comes close to his performance nearly a century ago. How great and legendary a player he was in his era. Along with his numerous test records, he also holds the record for the highest individual score in a series. He achieved this feat in the Ashes in 1930, when Australia was touring England. In this series, Don Bradman made 976 runs in seven innings out of the five matches played, in which his average was over 139. Apart from this, this series also included his highest of 334 runs and 4 centuries. Because of this amazing performance of Sir Don Bradman, Australia won this series 2-1. The kind of game that Bradman showed in this series is still remembered and praised a lot. His records of that series are still intact, which no one has been able to break even after almost a century.