Test Cricket is one of the most cherished formats of the game. Both batsmen and bowlers aim to pioneer this format of the game. For a batsman, it becomes highly important to acquire the crease for longer periods of time. It becomes necessary to convert good-looking starts into huge scores of hundreds and even double centuries in a given Test match. Players who continuously score double centuries in Test cricket are greatly recognized for their skills to bat for long hours against the red ball.
Most double centuries in Test Cricket
Former Australian batting maestro, Sir Don Bradman holds the record for scoring the most double hundreds in Test Cricket. Bradman, who finished with a mind-boggling Test average of 99.94, registered 12 double centuries in his entire Test career. Following Bradman, former Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara holds the second spot with 11 Test double centuries.
Among the current generation of players, Indian skipper Virat Kohli has scored 7 double hundreds in Test cricket which is the most for any Test player since 2016. In 2016, Kohli scored his maiden Test double century against West Indies at Antigua. His latest 200 in Tests came against South Africa in Pune, in 2019. Kohli scored 254* against the Proteas to also register his highest individual score in Test cricket.
Here's a list of players who have scored the most double centuries in Test Cricket.
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | 50 | 0 | 200s |
| DG Bradman (AUS) | 1928-1948 | 52 | 80 | 10 | 6996 | 334 | 99.94 | 29 | 13 | 7 | 12 |
| KC Sangakkara (SL) | 2000-2015 | 134 | 233 | 17 | 12400 | 319 | 57.40 | 38 | 52 | 11 | 11 |
| BC Lara (ICC/WI) | 1990-2006 | 131 | 232 | 6 | 11953 | 400* | 52.88 | 34 | 48 | 17 | 9 |
| WR Hammond (ENG) | 1927-1947 | 85 | 140 | 16 | 7249 | 336* | 58.45 | 22 | 24 | 4 | 7 |
| V Kohli (INDIA) | 2011-2020 | 86 | 145 | 10 | 7240 | 254* | 53.62 | 27 | 22 | 10 | 7 |
| DPMD Jayawardene (SL) | 1997-2014 | 149 | 252 | 15 | 11814 | 374 | 49.84 | 34 | 50 | 15 | 7 |
| MS Atapattu (SL) | 1990-2007 | 90 | 156 | 15 | 5502 | 249 | 39.02 | 16 | 17 | 22 | 6 |
| V Sehwag (ICC/INDIA) | 2001-2013 | 104 | 180 | 6 | 8586 | 319 | 49.34 | 23 | 32 | 16 | 6 |
| Javed Miandad (PAK) | 1976-1993 | 124 | 189 | 21 | 8832 | 280* | 52.57 | 23 | 43 | 6 | 6 |
| Younis Khan (PAK) | 2000-2017 | 118 | 213 | 19 | 10099 | 313 | 52.05 | 34 | 33 | 19 | 6 |
| Joe Root (ENG) | 2012-2021 | 125 | 230 | 18 | 10600 | 254 | 50.00 | 28 | 55 | 11 | 5 |
(Stat Courtesy: ESPNCricinfo)
Virat Kohli has been unable to hit any double century since managing the 254*against the Proteas back in October 2019. In fact, Kohli has been unable to manage a century since 2019. This is a major blow to the average and other stats. It is not a surprise that the average runs for Kohli have dropped from around 54 to under 50 in the last two years. Kohli now has the lowest average runs among the top five batsmen with the most double centuries in test cricket. All of the players above Kohli has been able to hit an average of more than 50 in their accomplished careers.
Meanwhile, Joe Root is the next on the current list of players to have hit a double century. He is also the latest in the top 10 list to have hit a double century. Root was able to come up with 228 and 215 in the space of a few months. Considering that Root is only 31 years old, he may very well be able to surpass a string of players who are above him in the list of most double centuries in test cricket. Another double century will put him on level terms with the likes of Sehwag, Younis Khan, Javed Miandad, Ricky Ponting, and Sachin Tendulkar.
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