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Since England and Australia played in Melbourne in 1877, more than 2000 Test matches have been played.
There have been several great and memorable performances since then. While on 97 occasions in Test cricket a bowler has taken eight or more wickets in an innings, there have been 30 instances of a batter scoring 300 or more runs in an innings.
Yet context is important when comparing individual performances. Brian Lara’s world-record 400 not out against England was inarguably a great innings. But it was on a flat Antigua pitch, and Lara - who was West Indies' captain at the time - could have reasonably declared much earlier than batting into the third day.
While Lara's innings remains the highest score in Test cricket, it is difficult to say if it is the best innings anyone has played in the longest format. In fact, it probably wasn't even Lara’s best innings.
Similarly, George Lohmann’s 15/45 (7/38 and 8/7) against South Africa in 1896 may have been one of the most statistically impressive feats in a Test match, but it was partially diminished by the conditions.
England were playing a far inferior South African side who failed to score more than 151 in a single innings during the three-match series. Furthermore, the Port Elizabeth pitch would have likely fallen well short of modern standards.
If a bowler was to take 15/45 against today’s South African side, it would likely put the feat in contention for this list, but Lohmann’s spells, while impressive, are not among the greatest.
While the raw figures are important, they are subsequently not the only determining factor in evaluating a performance. The opposition, the conditions, and the state of the match are all crucial in determining the quality of a performance.
A selection of honorable mentions has also been included before revealing the greatest performance in Test cricket history.
#10 Charles Bannerman (165 not out and 4 against England in 1877)
What better place to start than the first Test match ever?
Charles Bannerman faced the first ball in Test match history, delivered by England’s Alfred Shaw.
The historical significance of his innings was solidified from the very beginning, but even outside its historical context, Bannerman’s 165 can be regarded as one of the finest batting performances in a Test match.
Bannerman’s 165 saw him make 67.35 per cent of Australia’s runs during the innings, as the hosts would fall for 245.
Remarkably, more than 140 years on, no batter has scored a higher percentage of their team’s runs in a Test match innings. The closest Bannerman’s record has come to being toppled was when Michael Slater made 123 of Australia’s 184 runs against England in 1999 (representing 66.85 per cent of the Aussies' total).
Bannerman’s innings would be cut short as he was forced to retire hurt. Although he would return in the second innings, he was less successful then.
The innings was all the more extraordinary for the man who made it as Bannerman was no superstar.
The century would be the only one in his 44-match first-class career during which he would average a meager 21.62.
Nevertheless, it helped Australia to a 45-run win and helped secure Bannerman’s place in history.
#9 Imran Khan (6/98 and 5/82; 117 not out against India in 1983)
In the early 1980s, Imran Khan was arguably bowling as well as anyone had bowled.
He averaged less than 20 with the ball for five consecutive years between 1981-86, despite often bowling on pitches that favored batsmen.
In 1982 he took 62 wickets at an average of just 13.29, and in his first match of 1983, he would continue his form.
India and Pakistan were playing a six-match series.
The batsmen dominated the series. While Zaheer Abbas, Mudassar Nazar, and Javed Miandad would all average over 100, nine batters in total would average more than 50.
Meanwhile, the bowlers suffered as only three averaged below 40 for the series and only one below 30.
The bowler was, of course, Imran Khan, who seemed to be playing on different pitches, taking 40 wickets at just 13.95.
In a series of excellent performances, the third Test saw Khan’s finest.
India started on the front foot, scoring 372 but would have scored far more had Khan not taken 6/98. His victims included Sunil Gavaskar and Dillip Vengsarkar.
Pakistan proceeded to dwarf India’s total, eventually being bowled out for 652.
Khan again played a starring role, belting 117 off 121 deliveries, including five sixes.
As India’s focus turned to the draw, Pakistan’s focus turned to Khan.
Khan’s 5/82 saw him once again dominate the Indian batsmen, leaving Pakistan with just seven to chase.
#8 Denis Lindsay (69 and 182 against Australia in 1966)
By the time South Africa were banned from international cricket in 1970 due to apartheid, they were fielding possibly the best Test team since Australia’s 'invincibles'.
Their final series before their 22-year hiatus saw them batter Australia 4-0.
With the bat they had imposing figures such as Barry Richards and Graeme Pollock, and on the bowling front, they had the pace of Peter Pollock, and the skill and accuracy of Michael Proctor.
But equally important was the man behind the stumps, Denis Lindsay, who was one of the finest wicketkeepers of his generation and a more than capable batsman.
In 1965 South Africa defeated a strong England team in a three-match series, and in 1966-67, they played a five-match series against Australia and were eager to claim another major scalp.
Yet when the series began in Johannesburg, things could hardly have gone worse for the hosts.
Australia breezed through South Africa’s top order, and by the time Graham McKenzie removed Graeme Pollock for just 5, South Africa were flailing at 5/41.
It was at this stage Denis Lindsay joined Herbert Lance at the wicket.
Before the Test, Lindsay averaged just 21.84 with the bat and Herbert Lance just 21.22.
Yet the two resuscitated their side with a 110-run partnership to get South Africa back into the match.
Lindsay would top score for South Africa with 69, but he was only able to push his side’s total to 199.
Australia comfortably passed this total, making 325.
It could have been a lot more if not for the six catches Lindsay took. He ended the series with 24 catches, a then-record.
Yet it was when he returned with the bat that Lindsay truly changed the complexion of the game.
South Africa’s top order performed better in their second innings, and when Lindsay strode to the crease the match was evenly poised. The Proteas were five wickets down but had a 142-run lead.
Lindsay helped convert it into a 495-run lead with an exceptional 182.
His innings included a 221-run seventh-wicket partnership with captain Peter van der Merwe.
It was the first of three hundreds for Lindsay during the series, and the first of three wins for South Africa, as they won it by a 3-1 margin.
#7 Robert Massie (8/84 and 8/53 against England in 1972)
The early 1970s was a transitional time for Australian cricket. Greg Chappell, Rodney Marsh and Dennis Lillee all made their debuts in the 1970-71 Ashes, with England dispatching Australia with ease.
Australia did not play another Test until the next Ashes series in 1972, but the first match saw little change as England claimed a 89-run victory.
Australia’s selectors decided they needed to make an immediate change and brought Robert Massie into the team for the second Test.
Massie was a medium pacer who at times seemed pedestrian compared to the lightning quick Lillee. However, when conditions were right, Massie was able to swing the bowl like few others could. At Lords, the conditions were right.
The likes of Geoff Boycott, Tony Greig and Mike Smith were all unable to cope with Massie’s hooping seamers. He took 8/84 in the first innings, rattling the stumps thrice and also claiming three lbws.
Australia still only managed a 36-run lead after their innings, but Massie was not yet finished.
Again, the conditions were right, and again, England had no answer to Massie.
He bowled unchanged for 27.2 overs, claiming 8/53.
The four English wickets he did not take during the match were all claimed by Lillee.
It seemed Australia had an opening pair that would serve them well over the next decade, yet only seven months later Massie played his last Test.
Injuries would be his undoing but his short-lived time at the top of the game was certainly memorable.
#6 Narendra Hirwani 8/61 and 8/75 against the West Indies
A 19-year-old leg-spinner would replicate Massie’s feat 15 years later.
Narendra Hirwani was given his debut against a West Indies team who were almost unstoppable.
The Windies were leading the series 1-0 heading into the fourth and final Test when the Indian selectors surprised many by calling upon Hirwani in Chennai.
India started well, scoring 382 in the first innings. But the West Indies had declared at 5/530 in the previous Test, so India were relying on their bowlers to turn the tide.
Hirwani did just that.
Richie Richardson, Sir Vivian Richards and Carl Hooper were all outplayed by the teenager as Hirwani’s 8/61 put helped India earn a 198-run lead in the Test.
The West Indies decided to go after Hirwani in the second innings, but the result was the same.
Hirwani took 8/75, with Kiran More claiming five stumpings off the debutant's bowling, adding to his two in the first innings and helping India to victory in the Test.
Hirwani impressed again in his second Test, taking 6/59 during New Zealand’s second innings at Bangalore.
But his returns would gradually diminish, and his Test career was almost over by the time he was 21.
Hirwani enjoyed a brief return to Test cricket in 1995, but it would only last three matches.
#5 Graham Gooch (34 and 154 not out against the West Indies in 1991)
From 1980 to 1995 the West Indies did not lose a single series.
During this time, they seemed to particularly delight in tormenting England. Prior to the 1991 series, the past 35 meetings between the two sides had seen West Indies record 22 victories to England’s one.
The West Indies had many strengths, but it was still their pace battery that stood out.
In the first Test of the 1991 series in Headingly, the Windies boasted Malcolm Marshall, Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh and Balfour Patterson. A quartet that would make any batting side tremble.
When England were sent into bat on a bowler-friendly pitch, it seemed their fate was sealed.
Gooch opened the batting and saw off the new ball, but failed to go much further. His 34 was England's second-highest score as they fell for 198.
Somewhat surprisingly, when Gooch strode to the crease for a second time, England held a 25-run lead.
Sir Vivian Richards had threatened to take the game away from England with a typically cavalier 73, but he lacked support, as none of the six batsmen who came in after him managed to reach double figures and the West Indies only made 173.
England had hoped, however, that in the third innings they would not only have to contend with West Indies' sublime pace attack once more but would have to do so on a deteriorating pitch that neither side had managed to pass 200 on.
Ambrose struck thrice in his first spell - Michael Atherton, Graeme Hick, and Allan Lamb all fell while Gooch watched on at the other end.
Debutant Mark Ramprakash eked 27 runs off 109 balls before he too fell to Ambrose. Derek Pringle similarly managed 27 off 94 before being dismissed by Marshall.
No other English batsmen made more than 6, except for Gooch, who carried the bat through the innings to finish on 154. The rest of the England's team only managed 98. Gooch struck 18 of the 25 boundaries England hit.
The West Indies dominated England, but Gooch dominated the West Indies.
On one of the toughest batting pitches of the modern era, against one of the best bowling attacks in the history of the game, Gooch was imperious.
His innings would prove to be the decisive factor in the match as England claimed a 115-run victory.
They went on to tie the series 2-2, with Gooch being named joint Player of the Series, along with Ambrose.
#4 Muttiah Muralitharan (7/155 and 9/65 against England in 1998)
Muttiah Muralitharan claimed 22 10-wicket hauls in his career, more than twice the amount of the next best player (Shane Warne with 10).
The best of these 22 performances came at Kennington Oval, where Muralitharan produced 113 overs of sorcery.
England made an impressive start to the game, scoring 445 in the first innings.
At this stage, the pitch was not doing much but Muralitharan was still extracting every bit of life out of it.
During his 7/155, it became apparent that even England’s finest batsmen were struggling to pick his 'doosra', which was an ominous sign.
Sanath Jayasuriya (213) and Aravinda de Silva (152) lead Sri Lanka’s response, with the visitors finishing on 591.
Muralitharan even chipped in with a 36-ball 30 at the end, adding further suffering to a tired bowling attack.
England took only one wicket from spin bowling during the innings.
When England went out to bat again, it soon became apparent they were not battling Sri Lanka as much as they were battling Muralitharan.
Muralitharan made a decent batting pitch seem like a minefield. The most remarkable thing about England’s 181 was that they batted quite well.
They fought doggedly, but Muralitharan was simply too good, taking 9/65 and only being denied a tenth due to a run out.
#3 VVS Laxman (59 and 281 against Australia in 2001)
When Australia arrived in India in 2001, they were on a record-breaking 15-Test winning streak.
In the first Test in Mumbai, they extended their record to 16 matches and seemed poised to claim their first series win in India in more than three decades.
The start of the Kolkata Test did little to dissuade this feeling. The three-match Test series appeared to only have one winner as Australia scored 445 in the first innings before bowling India out for 171 in Kolkata.
Apart from a rampant Harbhajan Singh taking seven wickets, the only bright spot for India was VVS Laxman’s 59, which included a 42-run tenth-wicket stand with Venkatesh Prasad.
Laxman was 27 at the time but was yet to find his feet in Test cricket. In 20 matches he averaged just 27.06.
Had it not been for his incredible 167 against Australia a little over a year earlier, he probably would not have been in the team but thankfully for India, the selectors believed he would reward their faith.
With a 274-run lead, Steve Waugh decided to enforce follow on. India seemed frail, and with Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie, Michael Kasprowicz and Shane Warne at his disposal, Waugh probably felt confident in his decision.
Shiv Sunder Das and Sadagopan Ramesh fought off the new ball. But Warne then removed Ramesh to end the 52-run opening stand.
Surprisingly, it was not Rahul Dravid who walked to the crease at number three as had been the case in the first innings but was instead Laxman.
Laxman would play the innings of his career. He would only be dismissed when India were on 608, having shown complete mastery over a strong bowling attack.
His 376-run partnership with Dravid would not only turn the course of the match, but the entire series.
Despite having seemed to be in an unwinnable position, India defeated Australia by 171 runs in the Kolkata Test. They would then defeat them by two wickets in Chennai to claim the series, with Laxman again playing a key role.
Laxman’s Kolkata masterpiece would see him enter a new chapter of his career. The next time he faced Australia he would average 44.27 and be regarded as a definite starter in the team.
#2 Sir Ian Botham (50 and 149 not out, 6/95 and 1/14 against Australia in 1981)
In the early years of his career, there was no one like Sir Ian Botham.
Three hundreds and five fiver-fors in his first seven Tests made his immense talent immediately apparent to the cricketing world.
Yet come the 1981 Ashes, Botham was experiencing the first rough patch of his career.
The West Indies comfortably defeated England in a five-match series in which Botham would average 10.43 with the bat and 32.80 with the ball.
Things continued poorly for him in the first two Tests of the Ashes. While his bowling remained serviceable, Botham scored just 1 and 33 at Trent Bridge before making a pair at Lord's
Botham was demoted to second change with the ball and pushed down to number seven in the batting order. England were 1-0 down in the series and needed change.
Australia continued to impress in the first innings, scoring 401. But Botham looked back to his old self with the ball, taking 6/96 – his first five-for in 13 Tests.
Yet any optimism from Botham’s resurgence with the ball was quickly quashed as England’s top order crumbled. Botham came to the crease at 5/87. He added some respectability to England’s score with a quickfire 50 but it was not enough to stop Kim Highes from enforcing the follow-on, as Australia still had a 227-run lead.
England’s top order again imploded.
Soon after Botham walked to the crease, the score was 7/135. Most English fans were likely hoping to simply avoid an innings defeat but Botham had other plans.
Botham’s 149 not out was scored in just 148 deliveries. The carnage only ceased when he ran out of batting partners but by this stage, England had a 130-run lead.
Bob Willis then took over and claimed 8/43 with the ball to dismiss Australia for just 111 and earn England one of their greatest Test victories. Botham played his part in the final innings, taking the first by finding the edge of Graeme Wood’s bat when the opener was only on 10.
Botham took 5/11 in the next match to help his team to another unlikely win, with England eventually securing the Ashes 3-1.
Botham was unsurprisingly named Player of the Series.
Honorable mentions:
Needless to say, there are many great performances that did not quite make this list.
Aubrey Faulkner’s one-man show in the defeat to England in 1910, Stan McCabe’s defiance in the face of Bodyline in 1932, and Brian Lara’s fourth innings masterpiece against Australia in 1999 are perhaps the three performances closest to troubling the top 10.
Here is a list of honorable mentions, compiled in chronological order:
George Lohmann (7/38 and 8/7 vs South Africa in 1896)
Aubrey Faulkner (78 and 123; 5/120 and 3/40 against England in 1910)
Victor Trumper (214 not out and 28 against South Africa in 1911)
Sydney Barnes (8/56 and 9/103 vs South Africa in 1913)
Stan McCabe (187 not out and 32 against England in 1932)
Don Bradman (244 and 77 against England in 1934)
Don Bradman (13 and 270 against England in 1937)
Mulvantrai Mankad (8/52 and 5/79 against Pakistan in 1952)
Hugh Tayfield (4/79 and 9/113 against England in 1957)
Hanif Mohammed (17 and 337 against the West Indies in 1958)
Alan Davidson (44 and 80; 5/135 and 6/87 against the West Indies in 1960)
Polly Umrigar (5/107; 56 and 172 against the West Indies in 1962)
Garfield Sobers (174; 5/41 and 3/39 against England in 1966)
Sunil Gavaskar (124 and 220 against the West Indies in 1971)
Derek Underwood (5/20 and 8/51 against Pakistan in 1974)
Michael Holding (8/92 and 6/57 against England in 1976)
Sarfraz Nawaz (2/29 and 9/86 against Australia in 1979)
Ian Botham (114; 6/58 and 7/48 against India in 1980)
Allan Border (98 not out and 100 not out against the West Indies in 1984)
Richard Hadlee (54; 9/52 and 6/71 against Australia in 1985)
Abdul Qadir (9/56 and 4/45 against England in 1987)
Anil Kumble (4/75 and 10/74 against Pakistan in 1999)
Brian Lara (8 and 153 not out against Australia in 1999)
Brian Lara (221 and 130 against Sri Lanka in 2001)
Harbhajan Singh (7/133 and 8/84 against Australia in 2001)
Andy Flower (142 and 199 not out against South Africa in 2001)
Rahul Dravid (233 and 72 not out against Australia in 2003)
Kumar Sangakkara (57 and 192 against Australia in 2007)
Virender Sehwag (201 and 50 against Sri Lanka in 2008)
Brendon McCullum (8 and 302 against India in 2014)
Steve Smith (144 and 142 against England in 2019)
Ben Stokes (1/45 and 3/56; 8 and 135 not out against Australia in 2019)
#1 Jim Laker (9/37 and 10/53 against Australia in 1956)
65 years on, Jim Laker’s Old Trafford masterclass remains Test cricket’s greatest performance.
Statistically, there is no comparison.
The second-best Test match figures in Test history are Sydney Barnes' 17/159. That performance was in 1913, against a South African side far inferior to the Australian one of 1956.
In all of first class cricket, no other bowler has taken 19 wickets in a match. Two bowlers are recorded as having taken 18 wickets in a match, but these performances were before Test matches even began.
Laker’s 1956 performance stands alone above the rest.
Highlighting the extent of Australia’s capitulation was that Laker dismissed Neil Harvey for a pair, with the two dismissals coming just four hours apart due to Australia being asked to follow on.
Only Jim Burke, who fell to Laker’s fellow spinner, Tony Lock, prevented Laker from taking all 20.
The only caveat to Laker’s performance was the pitch.
It was technically the same pitch Richie Benaud had managed just 2/123 from when England batted first. But some rain after the first day – in which England made 3/307 – greatly changed its properties.
Australia felt aggrieved by the way the pitch had been tendered, yet Brian Statham, Trevor Bailey and Tony Lock all bowled 117 overs between them for just a single wicket.
Laker took 11 wickets in the match before and would take a further seven in the Test to follow during Australia’s two innings.
Australian captain Ian Johnson summed up the situation after the match:
"When the controversies and side issues of this match are forgotten. Laker's wonderful bowling will remain."
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