The business end of the World Test Championship (WTC) is finally here and with India & New Zealand locking horns at the Rose Bowl in just over a week, we thought we’d take you through the top batsman through the inaugural edition of the WTC. Some of the biggest names in the world do not feature on this list but the quality of cricket played as a team, by the likes of New Zealand, India, Australia and England has been nothing short of special in various phases. Here’s a list of the top 5 run-scorers in the World Test Championship 2019-21:
# | PLAYERS | INNINGS | RUNS | AVERAGE | 100s | 50s | HIGH SCORE |
1 | Marnus Labuschagne (AUS) | 23 | 1675 | 72.82 | 5 | 9 | 215 |
2 | Joe Root (ENG) | 37 | 1660 | 47.42 | 3 | 8 | 228 |
3 | Steve Smith (AUS) | 22 | 1341 | 63.85 | 4 | 7 | 211 |
4 | Ben Stokes (ENG) | 32 | 1334 | 46 | 4 | 6 | 176 |
5 | Ajinkya Rahane (IND) | 28 | 1095 | 43.8 | 3 | 6 | 115 |
5. AJINKYA RAHANE
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Ajinkya Rahane, the Indian vice-captain is India’s top run-scorer in the World Test Championship and finds himself 5th highest run-scorer overall through this period. With a total of 1095 runs, Rahane became the first Indian to cross the 1000 run mark in the tournament. Through the WTC, Rahane scored a total of 3 centuries and 6 half-centuries with a batting average of 43.8 and a high score of 115 runs. Perhaps the most memorable of them all was a Boxing Day Test century at the MCG vs the Aussies, after India were humiliated in the Adelaide Test.
4. BEN STOKES
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Ben Stokes‘ batting has been improving constantly in the longest format since getting his hands on the World Cup for England. In his 32 innings in the WTC, the Brit has scored a total of 1334 runs at an average of 46. Stokes scored a total 4 centuries, with two of them being absolute game-changers; one in the Ashes 2019 series against Australia where he scored an incredible 135* and the next one came against the West Indies last year (176), which is his highest score in the World Test Championship.
3. STEVE SMITH
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Steve Smith made his come-back to Test cricket at the Ashes which was the first match of the WTC. Having played 10 innings less than Ben Stokes, Steve Smith still finds himself ahead of the Englishman with just six runs separating the two. As a result of playing fewer games, his batting average is an incredible 63.85 which is the second-highest in the list of top run-scorers. Overall, the Australian has bagged 1341 runs with 4 centuries and 7 half-centuries along the way, and who can forget his incredibly special 211 against England at the Ashes.
2. JOE ROOT
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Second on the list is another English batsman and skipper, Joe Root. The England test captain has been impressive through the WTC and scored a total of 1660 runs in his 37 innings at an average of 47.42, which includes 3 centuries and 8 half-centuries. Root also scored back to back double hundreds in Sri Lanka and then India, with a masterful 228 of 321 balls against Sri Lanka and another double in Chennai vs India, to give England the early lead in that series.
1. MARNUS LABUSCHAGNE
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Marnus Labuschagne has played a very crucial part in the Australian batting order and as a result, finds himself as the top scorer of the World Test Championship. The Australian has become the 2nd Steve Smith in the line-up and is leading the charts with a total of 1675 runs in just 23 innings with a batting average of 72.82. Labuschagne also holds the record for the most number of fifties (9) and centuries (5) in the inaugural edition of the tournament with a highest score of 215 against Trans-Tasman rivals and second-ranked side, New Zealand.
[Image Credit: ICC – International Cricket Council]
Shashank Iyer