India’s Highest Test Scores at Each Batting Position
Who holds the record for the highest individual score across all eleven spots in the batting order for the Indian Test cricket team?
Highest Test Score for India at Each Position
| Position/no. | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Openers | Virender Sehwag – 319 vs South Africa (2008) | Virender Sehwag – 309 vs Pakistan (2004) | Virender Sehwag – 293 vs Sri Lanka (2009) | Virender Sehwag – 254 vs Pakistan (2006) | Mayank Agarwal – 243 vs Bangladesh (2019) |
| 3 | VVS Laxman – 281 vs Australia (2001) | Rahul Dravid – 270 vs Pakistan (2004) | Rahul Dravid – 233 vs Australia (2003) | Vinod Kambli – 227 vs Zimbabwe (1993) | Vinod Kambli – 224 vs England (1993) |
| 4 | Shubman Gill – 269 vs England (2025) | Virat Kohli – 254* vs South Africa (2019) | Sachin Tendulkar – 248* vs Bangladesh (2004) | Virat Kohli – 243 vs Sri Lanka (2017) | Sachin Tendulkar – 241* vs Australia (2004) |
| 5 | Karun Nair – 303* vs England (2016) | VVS Laxman – 200* vs Australia (2008) | Mohammad Azharuddin – 199 vs Sri Lanka (1986) | Mohammad Azharuddin – 192 vs New Zealand (1990) | Ajinkya Rahane – 188 vs New Zealand (2016) |
| 6 | Mahendra Singh Dhoni – 224 vs Australia (2013) | Rahul Dravid – 180 vs Australia (2001) | Chandu Borde – 177* vs Pakistan (1961) | Rohit Sharma – 177 vs West Indies (2013) | Sandeep Patil – 174 vs Australia (1981) |
| 7 | Ravindra Jadeja – 175* vs Sri Lanka (2022) | Kapil Dev – 163 vs Sri Lanka (1986) | Rishabh Pant – 159* vs Australia (2019) | Polly Umrigar – 130* vs England (1952) | Sandeep Patil – 129* vs England (1982) |
| 8 | Mahendra Singh Dhoni – 144 vs West Indies (2011) | Mahendra Singh Dhoni – 132* vs South Africa (2010) | Ravichandran Ashwin – 124 vs West Indies (2013) | WP Saha – 117 vs Australia (2017) | Kapil Dev – 116 vs England (1982) |
| 9 | Jayant Yadav – 104 vs England (2016) | Farokh Engineer – 90 vs New Zealand (1965) | Anil Kumble – 88 vs South Africa (1996) | Karsan Ghavri – 86 vs Australia (1979) | Axar Patel – 84 vs Australia (2023) |
| 10 | Ramakant Desai – 85 vs Pakistan (1960) | Madan Lal – 63* vs West Indies (1983) | Syed Kirmani – 63* vs West Indies (1983) | Atul Wassan – 53 vs New Zealand (1990) | Javagal Srinath – 52* vs West Indies (1994) |
| 11 | Zaheer Khan – 75 vs Bangladesh (2004) | Mohammed Shami – 51* vs England (2014) | Ghulam Ahmed – 50 vs Pakistan (1952) | Shivlal Yadav – 41 vs Australia (1985) | Harbhajan Singh – 40* vs Sri Lanka (2005) |
Key Insights
Virender Sehwag is the only Indian batter to bring up two triple hundreds in Test cricket. One of those scores of 319 against South Africa is also the highest for India.
Sehwag needed 278 balls to reach the 300-mark against South Africa, making it the fastest Test triple century by a batter.
Karun Nair is the other Indian triple centurion in the format. He is one of the five batters to bring up a 300-run knock at No. 5 in Tests. Nair aggregated an unbeaten 303 against England in 2016.
Sehwag is the only Indian Test batter with two or more 250-plus scores. And all of his four such scores came as an opener, the most among all opening batters.
Sehwag scored six double hundreds as an opener, the most for India and the joint most in all Tests.
Vinod Kambli is the youngest double centurion for India in Tests. At 21 years and 32 days, he scored 224 while batting at No. 3 against England in 1993.
Shubman Gill’s 269 against England is the highest score by an Indian Test captain (Check the overall list here). This was his maiden double ton in the longest format while batting at No. 4.
All of Virat Kohli’s seven double centuries came at No. 4, the most for India in Tests. Sachin Tendulkar follows with six double centuries in that position.
Rahul Dravid, Tendulkar, and Mohammad Azharuddin are the three Indian batters with two 190s scores each. Interestingly, Dravid’s scores came at No. 3, Tendulkar’s at No. 4, and Azharuddin did so at No. 5.
Azharuddin and KL Rahul are the two Indian batters to get out on 199 in Test cricket. Rahul is among the five openers, while Azharuddin was the first No. 5 batter to perish on the score of 199.
MS Dhoni has recorded the highest Test score by a wicketkeeper at No. 6. The former Indian skipper brought up 224 against Australia in 2013. Overall, Dhoni’s 224 is the fourth-highest score at No. 6 in Tests.
Later in the same year, Rohit Sharma broke a 48-year-old record. He scored 177 against the West Indies, which is the highest score by a No. 6 batter on Test debut. This is the second-highest score by an Indian Test debutant, though.
Kapil Dev has scored seven Test hundreds while batting at No. 7 or lower, the most for India. Five of those centuries alone came as a No. 7 batter, again the most for India. This included a 163-run knock against Sri Lanka, the highest by an Indian skipper at No. 7. It was the same game, in which Azharuddin got out for 199.
While Dhoni has the top two scores (both as captain) at No. 8, Ravichandran Ashwin has smashed the most hundreds for India. The former off-spinner brought up four 100-plus scores batting at No. 8.
Jayant Yadav is the lone No. 9 batter to score a Test century for India. He scored 104 against England in 2016, which led to the record 8th wicket partnership for India in Test cricket.
Only six and three batters have scored a fifty each at Nos. 10 and 11, respectively, for India in Tests.
