Top 5 Indian Test batsmen in 2019

Finishing 2019 at the top of the ICC World Test Championship with 360 points, India have once again solidified their stand as the team to beat in the longest format of the game. Clean sweeps against South Africa and Bangladesh at home and against West Indies in their own backyard meant that India's total of 360 was more than the cumulative total of all the other eight teams (292 points).

A fragile top order and a shaky middle order were the two areas of concern for the Indian team coming into this year. However, the combined efforts of all the batsmen helped the team strengthen their hold at the top of the points table.

On that note, here are the five batsmen who performed the best for India in Test Cricket in 2019.

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#5 Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma

Long regarded as a white-ball specialist, Rohit Sharma's promotion to the opener's slot resurrected his career in the longer format - just like it did in limited overs cricket. Brought into the squad for the vital home series against South Africa, Rohit wasted no time in making an immediate impact at the top of the order.

His twin innings of 176 and 127 in the opening Test were reminiscent of his centuries during his debut series against West Indies. Continuing his purple patch, Rohit notched up his first double century in the third Test when he scored 212 runs in India's only innings of the match and finished the three-match series with a mammoth total of 529 runs.

Also see – BPL Points Table

While his performances in the subsequent series against Bangladesh did not have the same impact, he will be looking to carry his form to the next year when India visit New Zealand for their next Test series.

Matches - 5; Innings - 6; Runs - 556; Average - 92.67; 100s/50s - 3/0; Best Score - 212

#4 Ravindra Jadeja

Ravindra Jadeja

This is not a list of the best Indian bowlers in Test cricket, and no, I didn't add Ravindra Jadeja's name by mistake. As a matter of fact, the southpaw has been in such great form with the bat over the past 12 months that he has solved India's worries of a batting all-rounder in the absence of Hardik Pandya.

Batting at either #6 or #7 in the eight Test matches that India played in 2019, Jadeja frequently meshed well with the middle order batsmen and the tail to build some vital partnerships. His five 50+ scores - two against South Africa and one each against Australia, Bangladesh and West Indies - were among the highest for India in 2019.

With blistering performances against a variety of teams, both away and at home, Jadeja has evolved from one of India's twin bowling all-rounders to a superb batting all-rounder.

Matches - 8; Innings - 10; Runs - 440; Average - 62.86; 100s/50s - 0/5; Best Score - 91

#3 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli

It would be a sin to make a list of best cricketers and not include Virat Kohli. The man has been in such great form over the past half a dozen years that him not scoring big runs in two successive innings is considered a massive disappointment.

While 2019 was not his best year in Test cricket, he still played some memorable knocks. His 254 not out against South Africa in the second Test is his highest individual score, and he ended the year with a phenomenal knock of 136 against Bangladesh in India's first ever day-night Test match, becoming the first Indian to score a Test century under lights.

With two other fifty-plus scores in eight Tests, captain Kohli was once again the rope that held India's middle order together.

Matches - 8; Innings - 11; Runs - 612; Average - 68.00; 100s/50s - 2/2; Best Score - 254*

#2 Ajinkya Rahane

Ajinkya Rahane

Captain Kohli is the glue that holds the Indian batting together in Test cricket, and his deputy Ajinkya Rahane is the savior that puts his hand up when all else fails. If the 2014-2015 season established Rahane as India's best Test batsman in overseas conditions, the 2019 season showed that he can do the same at home too.

The stylish batsman had a stunning return to form as he scored a hundred and two other 50+ scores during the away tour to West Indies. His knock of 102 at Antigua was his first 100+ score in more than two years.

Rahane continued his form into the subsequent home series against Bangladesh and South Africa, where he added another hundred and three 50+ plus scores.

With India's Test specialist back in form, the team would now be hoping for him to carry his purple patch into the away tour to New Zealand.

Matches - 8; Innings - 11; Runs - 642; Average - 71.33; 100s/50s - 2/5; Best Score - 115

#1 Mayank Agarwal

Mayank Agarwal

In December 2018, Mayank Agarwal was trying to make his way into the Indian Test squad following years of tremendous performances in the domestic circuit. Fast forward to a year later, and the man is not only India's first-choice opener in Test Cricket, but also the highest run-scorer for the team in the longest format of the game this year.

From his sensible knock during the last Test match against Australia in January to his impeccable double hundred against Bangladesh in the first Test, the right-handed opener from Karnataka destroyed some of the best bowlers in the world. With one more double hundred and two other 50+ scores to his name, Agarwal's performance in his debut year was as good as any that the game of cricket has seen.

If he continues his outstanding form in the future, Agarwal would become a force to be reckoned with everywhere.

Matches - 8; Innings - 11; Runs - 754; Average - 68.55; 100s/50s - 2/2; Best Score - 243