3 Indian cricketers with the most consecutive Test appearances

Test matches are the most challenging form of the game of cricket. They go on for five days, and Test cricketers need incredible stamina to endure 90-odd overs every day.

Fast bowlers often bowl long spells if the opposition batsmen have dug in, while batting always requires endurance and constant concentration. This is, of course, apart from wicket-keeping, which is a whole different ball game involving repeated crouching.

Over the years, Indian cricketers have gotten fitter and better, and the Test team has started to perform much better away from home.

Sourav Ganguly instilled the fight in the team that helped them perform overseas, while MS Dhoni took India to #1 in Test ranking for the first time in history. Under Virat Kohli, India have won a Test series in Australia, and mounted serious challenges in England and South Africa.

These remarkable performances would not be possible without the combined efforts of various players who have pushed their boundaries to play a large number of games consecutively and form a set combination.

In this article, we take a look at the 3 Indian cricketers with the most consecutive Test appearances.

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#3 Gundappa Viswanath (87 matches)

Gundappa Viswanath in action for India

Between 19 March 1971 and 30 January 1983, Gundappa Viswanath played 87 Tests in a row for India, out of a total of 91 career games. He scored 5,746 runs in this period, with 33 fifties and 13 centuries as well.

The wristy right-hander took a particular liking to the Aussies, scoring 1,204 runs at an average of 54.72 and with 10 fifty-plus scores. In what is a statistic that depicts clearly the kind of batsman Viswanath was, he was excellent against the fearsome West Indies, scoring 1,455 runs at an average of 53.88.

Viswanath was one of the best exponents of the square cut, and this contributed majorly to his success on the bouncy pitches of Australia and the menacing pace attack of the West Indies. However, after his last Test of this period, he was dropped and never played for India again.

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#2 Rahul Dravid (93 matches)

Rahul Dravid was arguably the Indian cricket team's most important Test player

Indian batting legend Rahul Dravid is in second place on this list. After his debut on 20 June 1996 at Lord's (he scored a fighting 95), The Wall played 93 consecutive Tests for India, with the streak ending on 10 December 2005.

Dravid scored 8,003 runs in this time frame at an average of 57.16, almost 5 points above his career Test average. He also scored 39 fifties and 20 centuries, with his Test highest score of 270 also coming in this period against Pakistan.

Dravid played 9 different oppositions during his streak, and averaged less than 50 against only two of them - South Africa (39.47) and Australia (48.48). India's greatest-ever No. 3 had a great 2002, scoring 1,357 runs along with 10 fifty-plus scores.

Rahul Dravid retired as one of India's best batsmen of all time.

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#1 Sunil Gavaskar (106 matches)

Sunil Gavaskar was courage personified at the top of the order against the fastest of bowlers

Between 23 January 1975 and 3 February 1987, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar played 106 consecutive Tests, the most by any Indian player and fourth-highest overall.

He scored 8,545 runs in this period with 35 fifties and 29 centuries, depicting his incredible concentration and conversion rate. The original Little Master scored over 1,500 runs against 4 - Australia, England, West Indies, and Pakistan - out of the 6 oppositions he faced.

Much like his brother-in-law Viswanath, Gavaskar was at his imperious best against the West Indies, scoring 1,961 runs at a whopping average of 56.02. He also registered 9 tons against the Caribbean side. He had prolific 1978 and 1979 calendar years, scoring over 1,000 runs in each year and averaging 91.58 and 54.11 respectively.

Sunil Gavaskar became the first man to cross 10,000 runs in Test cricket and when he retired, he was undoubtedly the greatest batsman India had ever produced.

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