10 most iconic match-saving partnerships in Tests

#2 Mike Atherton and Jack Russell vs South Africa at Johannesburg, 1995

Atherton and Russell's patient batting guided England to a draw against South Africa

The first Test of England’s tour of South Africa in 1995 at Centurion witnessed three days of intense rainfall which resulted in the match being drawn. The second Test would be played at Johannesburg.

The hosts batted first and put up 332 in their first innings thanks to Gary Kirsten’s 110 and Daryl Cullinan’s 69.

In reply, England could only manage 200, with Robin Smith scoring 52 while Alec Stewart and Graham Thorpe added 45 and 34 respectively. In their second innings, the Proteas scored 346/9 thanks to Brian McMillan’s 100 and Cullinan’s 61.

England were set a target of 479. Skipper Mike Atherton batted brilliantly but did not receive much support from his teammates, leaving England floundering at 232/5 and still requiring a good 247 runs for victory. At the crease were Atherton and wicket-keeper Jack Russell.

Their patient batting frustrated the likes of Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock and they added a partnership of 119, with the England skipper scoring a career-best 185 from 492 deliveries after batting for nearly 11 hours. Russell ended with 29 from 235 deliveries after batting for more than four-and-a-half hours.

#1 Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman vs Australia at Kolkata, 2001

Laxman and Dravid built one of the greatest partnerships in India's Test history

This is undoubtedly one of the most important partnerships in Indian cricketing history. After losing the first Test to Australia at Mumbai during their home series in 2001, India had to face off against the most powerful team in the world at Eden Gardens.

Australia put on 445 in their first innings thanks to Steve Waugh’s 110 and fifties from Matthew Hayden (97) and Justin Langer (58). The only positive for India during that innings was Harbhajan Singh who picked up 7 wickets, becoming the first Indian to take a hat-trick in Test cricket.

However, Australia’s bowling attack skittled India out for just 171, with Glenn McGrath picking up four wickets and Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie, and Michael Kasprowicz picking up two each.

Steve Waugh enforced the follow-on and India had to bat again. In the second innings, Sourav Ganguly made a move that changed India's cricketing fortunes forever. He sent VVS Laxman in at No. 3 instead of Rahul Dravid. Ganguly and Laxman added 117 for the fourth wicket before the former was dismissed for 48.

India were 232/4 when Dravid came in to bat at No. 6. What followed was one of the most iconic partnerships in Test cricket history, built by two of India’s most reliable batsmen. Dravid and Laxman batted extraordinarily for more than a day, taking India to safety. The duo added 376 for the 5th wicket, with Laxman scoring a special 281 which at the time was the highest score by an Indian in Test cricket.

They treated the likes of Warne and McGrath with disdain. The partnership was eventually broken by McGrath when he dismissed Laxman. However, by that time, India had taken a 308-run lead. Dravid was later dismissed for 180.

At the beginning of Day 5, Ganguly declared the Indian innings, setting Australia a target of 384 to win. Harbhajan and Sachin Tendulkar's brilliance with the ball meant Australia were dismissed for 212, ending their 16-match winning streak. India thus became only the third team to win a Test match after following on.

This win remains India’s most memorable Test victory and it was made possible by the 376-run partnership for the 5th wicket shared by Dravid and Laxman. It remains the second-highest 5th-wicket partnership in the history of Test cricket behind Don Bradman and Sid Barnes' partnership for Australia in 1946.