Indian batsmen who were at the top of the rankings for the highest period

Top Indian batsman Gundappa Viswanath, circa 1985. (Photo by Adrian Murrell/Getty Images)
Vishwanath was the first Indian batsman to climb to the top spot

Whenever India are chasing a target it is Virat Kohli who more often than not delivers for the team. Take for example the ongoing series against New Zealand.

India have won two and lost two out of the four games that have been played. On both occasions when India clinched the issue it was Kohli who remained unbeaten – on 85 and 154 not out. In the other two ODIs, Kohli made contributions of 17 and 45 and his side could not go past the finishing line.

The over-dependence on the star run-getter is quite evident from this fact and justifies Kohli's position in the top half of the ICC player rankings. In ODIs he is second behind South Africa’s AB De Villiers while in T20s he is at the top spot with 820 points.

Kohli has been quite outstanding in the last few years and thus deserves a place at the top position. For the record, it was Gundappa Viswanath who was the first Indian batsman to make it to the summit.

Here in this article, we look at the Indian batsmen who were at the top of the rankings for the highest period.

#5 Gundappa Viswanath (February 1975 to November 1975)

The wristy batsman from Karnataka not only was the first Indian to top the rankings but also stayed there for a considerable length of time.

Vishwanath had displaced Glenn Turner to perch atop the list on February 20,1975. He was in the spot for nine months but then West Indies legend Alvin Kallicharran toppled him from the top on November 28 of the same year.

During his career which lasted for 14 years, he was always sublime, caressing lethal deliveries to the ropes with ease. His batting was like poetry in motion. He was the top of his game for a long time with the occasional dip in form and a healthy rivalry with Sunil Gavaskar.

Viswanath amassed 6080 runs from the 91 Tests he played in with the highest score of 222. He also played in 25 ODI where he scored 439 runs at an average of 19.95.

#4 Rahul Dravid (May 2004 to March 2005)

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 23:  India batsman Rahul Dravid picks up some runs during day three of the 1st npower test match between England and India at Lords on July 23, 2011 in London, England.  (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Dravid has 10,889 ODI runs

Another batsman from Karnataka, Rahul Dravid scaled the summit twice. But his second stint lasted longer. He was perched at the top for 11 months at a stretch from May 2004 to March 2005. Dravid was the Indian middle order talisman during that period.

Everytime India were in trouble in ODI or Tests during that period he would battle it out for his side. Outside the subcontinent, he was a talisman for the side and has single-handedly taken India to some very memorable wins.

By the time, Dravid hung up his boots he was a legend. He made his international debut in 1996 and continued till 2012 and during the tenure he had scored a whopping 10,889 ODI runs to his credit.

His Test match record is even better. From 164 Tests he notched 13,288 at an average of 52.31.

#3 Dilip Vengsarkar (December 1987 to November 1988)

Nov 1988:  Portrait of Dilip Vengsarkar of India during the First Test match against New Zealand at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore, India. India won the match by 172 runs.  \ Mandatory Credit: Adrian  Murrell/Allsport
Vengsarkar reign at the top lasted for 11 months

Vengsarkar was actually the first batsman in the world to be officially acknowledged as the top-ranked batter as the Deloitte Rankings – the precursor to the ICC Rankings – were introduced that very year.

Quite astonishingly two years before moving up to the top spot in the batting world Vengsarkar was 26th on the ladder. 1986 was a magical year for the Mumbai batsman which propelled him to the top 10.

And he did not stop there, he continued with his merriment at the crease and on Boxing Day of 1987, he moved to the top spot removing Australian legend Allan Border.

Vengsarkar’s reign lasted for 11 months before he was replaced by Javed Miandad.

#2 Sunil Gavaskar (December 1978 to June 1980)

sunil gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar displaced Viv Richards to grab the top spot

He was arguably one of the finest batsmen the cricketing world has ever seen and his reign at the top was quite a long one too.He became the No.1 batsman for the first time on December 1,1978 toppling the great Vivian Richards who at that time was busy playing in the World Series.

Richards once again regained the numero uno spot in June 1980, seven months after coming back to international cricket.Gavaskar never reached the pinnacle again. His batting form also dipped after the 19-month reign at the top and he slid down the rankings.

The Mumbai batsman has scored over 10000 runs in Test cricket from 1971 to 1987. During that period too he had amassed 3092 runs from 108 ODIs. By the time he retired, he was considered to be the best India, years later his records were surpassed by a certain Sachin Tendulkar.

#1 Sachin Tendulkar (March 1998 to August 2002)

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 23:  India batsman Sachin Tendulkar picks up some runs during day three of the 1st npower test match between England and India at Lords on July 23, 2011 in London, England.  (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Sachin Tendulkar has 100 international centuries

The longest reign at the summit was by Sachin Tendulkar. The first time he was on top was on November 18, 1994. He stayed there for almost 8 months but then slid down the rankings again. But in March 1998 he climbed up the stairs to be atop the board again and this time he stayed there for long.

No one, not even the great Brian Lara could dislodge him from the seat till August 2002, a record which still now stands. Astonishingly the little master once again got back the batting crown on October 8,2010 almost 16 years after he made his Test debut.

Only Don Bradman, Garry Sobers, and Jack Hobbs have managed comparable stints at the very top in the history of the game.

By the time he quit the game, Tendulkar had a record breaking 18426 runs in ODIs and 15921 Test runs which included 100 international tons.

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Edited by Staff Editor