Top 9 Indian openers with most centuries in Australia in test cricket

Three Indian openers have registered multiple centuries in Australia in test cricket.

The Indian cricket team has been blessed with some of the greatest test openers of all time, the biggest name among them being Sunil Gavaskar, followed by the likes of Virender Sehwag and now young Yashasvi Jaiswal is making a mark on world cricket in the test arena.

However, only a handful of Indian top-order batsmen have done well in Australia. The Australian conditions pose immense challenges for openers. Against their tall fast bowlers, it’s always difficult to survive the pace and bounce while facing the new ball.

Less than a dozen Indian openers have recorded a century in test cricket in Australia, and only very few have managed multiple of those.

In this article, we will look at the Indian openers who have struck the most test centuries on Australian soil.

Top 9 Indian openers with most centuries in Australia in test cricket:

9. Murali Vijay – 1

Right-handed opener Murali Vijay made a terrific century in the Brisbane test on India’s 2014/15 tour of Australia. He scored 144 runs off 213 balls with 22 fours in his knock.

India posted 408 in their first innings, courtesy of Vijay’s 144. However, they were trounced by Steve Smith’s 133, followed by a four-for from Mitchell Johnson, eventually losing the test match by four wickets.

8. Kris Srikkanth – 1

Former India opener Kris Srikkanth’s only century in Australia in test cricket came in the 1986 Sydney test. Batting first, Srikkanth played an attacking knock of 116 runs off 117 balls, laced with 19 fours and one six.

Sunil Gavaskar and Mohinder Amarnath also made hundreds in that innings as India posted 600 runs. The match ended in a thrilling draw, with Australia escaping by only four wickets.

7. Ravi Shastri – 1

Nicknamed the ‘Champion of Champions,’ former India all-rounder Ravi Shastri is the only Indian opener to hit a double century in Australia. He made 206 off 477 balls in the 1992 Sydney test. His knock included 17 fours and two sixes.

Shastri’s double century helped India score 483 in reply to Australia’s first innings score of 313. The match ended in a draw, with Shastri bagging the Man of the Match award.

6. KL Rahul – 1

In what was just the second test match of his career, KL Rahul produced an outstanding knock in Sydney in 2015.

Opening the batting, Rahul led India’s reply to Australia’s first innings total of 572 with a sumptuous 110-run knock off 262 balls, hitting 13 fours and a six.

The match ended in a draw as India escaped by three wickets on day 5.

5. VVS Laxman – 1

VVS Laxman hit six centuries against Australia in test cricket, and one of them came while opening the batting in Sydney on the 1999/2000 tour.

Australia posted 552 runs after India were knocked over for only 150. In India’s second innings, as the team headed towards a loss, Laxman made a fightback with a classy knock of 167 runs off 198 balls, creaming 27 boundaries. India still lost the match by an innings.

4. Yashasvi Jaiswal – 1

Yashasvi Jaiswal is the latest Indian opener to hit a century in Australia in test cricket. The 22-year-old achieved this feat in the Perth test on the 2024/25 tour.

India had taken a 46-run first innings lead. Jaiswal piled up on that lead with a superb knock of 161 runs off 297 balls that included 15 fours and three sixes.

3. Virender Sehwag – 2

Virender Sehwag smashed two centuries in Australia while opening for India in test cricket. One each on the 2003/04 and 2007/08 tours.

In Melbourne in 2003, he cracked 195 off 233 balls, and in Adelaide in 2008, Sehwag plundered 151 off 236 balls. India lost the Melbourne test, while the Adelaide test was drawn.

2. Vinoo Mankad – 2

Former opener Vinoo Mankad registered two centuries as an opener in Australia in test cricket. Both came on the 1947/48 tour and both were made in Melbourne in the third and fifth test matches of the series.

His scores were 116 (187) and 111 (309). India, though, lost both of those test matches.

1. Sunil Gavaskar – 5

With five centuries, Sunil Gavaskar holds the record for the most hundreds by an Indian opener in Australia in test cricket.

Gavaskar scored eight test tons against Australia, out of which five came Down Under. Three of those came on the 1977/78 tour and two on the 1985/6 tour. Of these, Australia won two tests, India won one and two were drawn.

Overall, Gavaskar had an impressive record in Australia: 920 runs in 11 tests at an average of 51 with five tons.

(All stats updated till 24th November, 2024)

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