Cricket is one of the purest forms of outdoor games which was invented by the Englishmen during the late 16th century. In the earlier days, the game was played where bowlers used to ball with an under-arm bowling action. As time passed, the game evolved from under-arm bowling to over-arm action and from 60-over cricket to 50-over matches, T20 cricket, and even T10 matches. If we talk about test cricket, there are not enough words to describe the beauty of this format. Test cricket is indeed the toughest format of cricket that is played for a maximum of 5 days and each day consists of 90 overs of play.
It is mind-boggling for the young and ambitious generation of cricketers who are growing up playing 20-over formats and are only interested in playing IPL and other major leagues. There’s no doubt that a sport should evolve at a pace, but test cricket is arguably the best format of cricket. There was an era of Don Bradman and then came the era of Dennis Lillie and the mighty Viv Richards and West Indian fast, fierce, and tall bowlers.
In today’s competitive landscape, cricket is more than just a game, for spectators and fans, it’s a religion and for entrepreneurs, it’s a source of generating high-end income. Cricketers like Virat Kohli, Babar Azam, Steven Smith, Joe Root, Marnus Labuschagne, Kane Williamson, and others have become some of the ambassadors of test cricket.
Cricket is a gentleman’s game, but there were some cricketers in the past and still in the present who aren’t really gentle when it comes to smashing the bowlers all around the park. This blog is going to talk about some of the batters who have the best strike rate in test cricket with a minimum of 3000 runs.
10 Cricketers with the Best Strike Rate in Test Cricket (Min 3000 Runs)
It is true that bowlers like James Anderson called Jimmy, Dale Steyn, Brett Lee, Shoaib Akhtar, Glenn McGrath, Zaheer Khan, Shane Warne, Muttiah Muralitharan, Anil Kumble, and Harbhajan Singh were some of the greatest fast and spin bowlers to dominate almost two decades in test cricket.
Jimmy Anderson is the only bowler on the list who is still playing, as he recently announced his retirement and is set to play his last international game in July 2024. He has decided to play his last game on the same ground where he debuted for England in 2003. He will play his last game on the Lords against West Indies.
Coming back to the focal point, here are some of the most destructive and impactful batsmen to play test cricket.
#1 Virender Sehwag
Born and brought up in Najafgarh, Virender Sehwag made his test debut on the 3rd of November 2001 against South Africa. Playing that game as a middle-order batsman, Sehwag and Sachin managed to revive the crumbling Indian innings by scoring 105 and 155 runs, respectively.
Sehwag’s real potential was unleashed when he started to open the innings for India in every format of the game. He broke many records in all forms of the game and was also part of world-cup-winning squads in 2007 and 2011.
Famously regarded as the “Sultan of Multan and Viru”, Sehwag played 104 test matches for India and scored 8586 runs with an average of 49.34. Along with his highest score of 319, he smacked 23 centuries and 32 half-centuries. His career strike rate is still the best even after a decade since his retirement. With a strike rate of 82.21, Sehwag has the highest strike rate in test matches while representing India in the purest forms of the game.
#2 Adam Gilchrist
Adam Gilchrist is one of the most humble, genuine, and honest cricketers to be ever produced in Australia. Before Adam Gilchrist, teams used to look for a keeper with average batting skills. But after his debut, things started to change. Adam used to bat at number 6-7 and the man changed the whole perception of a keeper-batsman equation for the world of cricket. Gilchrist played the longest forms of the game for almost a decade and represented Australia in 96 rest matches.
During the early 2000s, the major reason behind Australia’s dominance in the longest forms of the game was their team selection and batting position. Gilchrist was a pure batsman, and he used to bat at 7. In his 96 Red Ball games, Gilchrist scored 5570 runs with the help of 17 centuries and 26 half-centuries.
Being a lower-order batsman, Gilchrist had an average of 47.61, which is seriously exceptional. On top of that, his game was appreciated by experts across the globe because of his blistering strike rate of 81.96.
When it comes to the highest strike rate in test cricket, Adam Gilchrist still holds the second spot.
#3 Quinton de Kock
Quinny de Kock is one of the modern-day batters who never believed in changing his batting style, even when playing the hardest forms of the game. Being a South African wicketkeeper and batsman, Quinton de Kock played 54 matches and scored 3300 runs with the help of 6 centuries and 22 half-centuries. The left-handed elegant batsman scored these runs with an average of 38.82 and a strike rate of 70.94.
On December 30, 2021, Quinton de Kock announced his retirement from the longest, toughest, and purest forms of the game. In the list of batters with the highest strike rate in test cricket, Quinton de Kock comes at number 3.
#4 David Warner
David Warner is a guy who has shown what the Australian attitude on the field looks like. His elegant and destructive batting style helped the Aussies to win many games. He debuted for Australia in the year of 2011 and played his last red-ball game earlier this year.
He represented the Australia men’s cricket team on 112 occasions and scored 8786 runs with the help of 26 centuries and 37 half-centuries. His best score of 335* came against Pakistan in just 418 balls. His average of 44.60 and an impressive strike rate of 70.19 have helped him to climb up in this list to number 4.
The worst point in his career was when he, along with the then-captain Steve Smith and top-order batsman Cameron Bancroft, was caught on television and found guilty of tempering the ball with sandpaper. This infamous incident is famously recognized as the Sandpaper Gate Ball-Tempering Scandal. Both Steve Smith and David Warner were sacked from their leadership roles and were banned by Cricket Australia for 12 months. On the other hand, Bancroft also faced a ban for 9 months from all domestic and international formats of the game.
Despite facing verbal abuse from fans and spectators, David Warner came stronger than ever and was a part of the T20 World Cup in 2021, the ICC World Test Championship in June 2023, and the ICC ODI World Cup winning squad in India in November 2023.
#5 Sarfaraz Ahmed
Sarfaraz Ahmed is a Pakistani wicket-keeper batsman who led the team across all forms of the game. He debuted for Pakistan in the year 2010 by replacing Kamran Akmal against Australia. So far, with the help of 54 matches, he has scored 3031 runs with the help of 4 centuries and 21 half-centuries.
Though his numbers are not as interesting as they should have been, his strike rate of 70.16 has helped Pakistan on numerous occasions to score at a decent pace and try to take away the game from the opposition. He led Pakistan to defeat India in the ICC Champions Trophy final but was sacked from the captaincy after Pakistan’s below-average performance in the 2019 ICC ODI cricket World Cup.
#6 Tillakaratne Dilshan
Tillakaratne Dilshan is a former Sri Lankan opening batsman and skipper who played red-ball cricket from 1999 to 2013. His 14-year-long career was filled with several challenges that he overcame almost every time. He represented his nation on 86 occasions and scored 5492 runs with the help of 64 centuries and 23 half-centuries. Dilshan, also known for his famous pallu scoop, had a unique batting style and was also a terrific fielder and a handy bowler.
In the purest forms of the game, Tillakaratne Dilshan scored more than 5000 runs with an impressive average of 40.99 and an exceptional strike rate of 65.55. Playing on the merit of the ball helped him throughout his career to score runs at a quick pace. In this list of best strike rates in the test, Dilshan truly deserves a spot at number 6.
#7 Stuart Broad
There was a young lad who once got smashed for 6 sixes in an over by Yuvraj Singh, and back then, no one knew that this young kid would become one of the legends of English and International cricket. Yes, we are talking about Stuart Broad, aka Broady. Broad recently retired from all forms of the game following the conclusion of the 2023 Ashes series. He and James Anderson, aka Jimmy, were the two main pillars of England’s test team bowling for almost 2 decades.
Stuart Broad debuted for England in 2007 and played his last against Australia in 2023, becoming the only player in the world to hit a six while batting and take a wicket while bowling on his last ball. Known for his late inswingers and pinpoint length bowling, broad also has a decent batting record. Being a bowler, broad managed to score 3662 runs in 167 matches at an average of 18.04. Also, he has scored a century along with 13 half-centuries as well. His career strike rate of 65.31 is one of the overlooked features of his batting. Stuart Broad has the 7th highest strike rate in test cricket.
#8 Sanath Jayasuriya
Sanath Jayasuriya is one of the most destructive and fierce batting all-rounders the world cricket has ever witnessed. His destructive batting style and left-arm orthodox spin have helped Sri Lanka to win on numerous occasions. He debuted for Sri Lanka in 1991 and went on to play over 100 test matches in a span of 16 years. In his 110 test matches, he scored 6273 runs with the help of 14 centuries and 31 half-centuries.
He is one of the most underrated all-rounders after Jacques Kallis. With an average of 40.07 and a lightning strike rate of 65.13, Sanath Jayasuriya secures the 8th spot in the list of highest strike rates in a test career.
#9 Travis Head
Travis Head is one name that Indian Cricket Fans are going to remember for a long long time. The Australian middle-order batsman has been one of the most unique talents after David Warner. His attacking batting style first helped Australia in the ICC Test Championship Final against India as he went on to score 163 runs and take the game away from his opposition. This helped Australia to win the ICC Test Cricket Championship as India lost the final two consecutive times.
Travis Head’s mastery did not stop there as he became the only player to score a century in two ICC tournament finals. The stage was set for India to lift the 3rd ODI World Cup, but Travis once again ruined the party. He scored 137 runs in the blink of an eye.
Well, he debuted for Australia in red-ball cricket in 2018. He has so far played 49 test games and has scored 3173 runs with an average of 41.75 and with the help of 7 centuries and 16 half-centuries. What makes him even more dangerous is his strike rate of 64.72. Being a middle-order batsman, Travis can snatch the game from the opposition really quickly. We are sure that as his career moves ahead, his strike rate will move upward, and he will climb up in the list of the best strike rate in test cricket.
#10 Brendon McCullum
Brendon McCullum, aka Baz, is a name that every IPL fan is aware of. The man who smashed 158* in the inaugural match of the Indian Premier League. The man who is known for his approach comes on the final spot of this list.
Brendon is currently the red-ball coach for England’s Men’s Cricket Team, and his unique and aggressive approach has completely redefined the way we look at test cricket. He debuted for New Zealand in the year of 2004 and played his last game in 2016. He represented New Zealand on 101 occasions and scored 6453 runs with a best score of 302. With a strike rate of 64.60 and an average of 38.64, Brendon scored 12 centuries and 31 half-centuries.
His aggressive coaching approach allowed England batters to dominate on a whole new level with the bat. In the 2023 Ashes, England batters showcased a whole new approach to playing test cricket by scoring with a run rate of ODI games in almost every game.
Despite losing the first two tests, England never gave up on their approach and continued to play the way they decided, and this eventually helped them to conclude the series 2-2. Though Australia retained the Ashes, the entire cricket scene was talking about the fearless approach of the English batters.
Conclusion
So, these are the top 10 Cricketers with the best and highest strike rate in test cricket. There is no doubt that the game has evolved in the past few decades. But the truth is the purest forms of the game remain the only format to test the skill of individuals. There is no question about how batsmen like Sir Vivian Richards, Virendra Sehwag, Brendon McCullum, Adam Gilchrist, and a few others changed the meaning of test cricket and the way of playing it.
As we move ahead with the game, players like Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rishab Pant will further revolutionize the ways to bat in the purest forms of the game. Who knows that maybe a couple of years later, any or all of these guys will make the list of the best strike rate in test cricket. We’ll have to wait and see.
