The emergence of cricket as a Global Sport has been rampant. Over the years, there have been players who have come and upstaged the game with their performance on the international stage. From Sir Don Bradman to Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, from Virat Kohli to Joe Root and Babar Azam, the world of cricket has seen many great batters grace the international stage.
Batting phenomes were earlier produced in England, Australia, and West Indies. However, in the last 50 years, the Indian subcontinent has also given many legendary players to the cricketing world. Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Kumar Sangakkara, and Inzamam-ul-Haq, are among the few names who have had a major role to play in cricket’s growth as a Sport.
In this article, we’ll take a look at the 5 batsmen who have scored the most runs in international cricket with all the three for4mats combined.
Top 5 Batsmen With Most Runs In International Cricket
5. Jacques Kallis
The former South African all-rounder, Jacques Kallis, is widely regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders to play the game of Cricket. Kallis was a force to reckon with in all the 3 departments of the game. Be it batting, bowling, or fielding, Kallis would always do the hard yards for his team.
He is 5th on the list of batsmen with the most runs in international cricket. Kallis has scored 25534 runs in the international circuit. The majority of these runs have come in the Test format with him scoring 13289 runs in the longest format of the game. He has scored 11579 runs in ODI cricket and 666 runs in T20Is.
*Stats updated till 11/07/22.
4. Mahela Jayawardene
Next on the list of the batsmen with the most runs in international cricket is former Sri Lankan legend, Mahela Jayawardene. Mahela also played all 3 formats of the game for Sri Lanka and was a treat for the eyes. His century in the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 against India, remains one of the modern-day classics.
Mahela went on to score 25957 runs throughout his stint in the international circuit. Out of these, he scored 11814 runs in the Test format. He was a batting maestro of the 50-over format and he went on to score 12650 runs in ODIs. He also smashed 1493 runs in the shortest international format, the T20Is.
*Stats updated till 11/07/22.
3. Ricky Ponting
Former Australian captain and the leader of one of the greatest ever teams to step on the cricket field in the international circuit, Ricky Ponting is 3rd on the list of the batsmen with the most runs in international cricket. Ponting was a great leader and under his leadership, Australia became a force to be reckoned with.
He led by example as he kept on piling runs throughout the Globe. Ponting smashed 27483 runs in international cricket. Ponting smashed 13378 runs in the longest format of the game. He also scored 13704 runs in ODIs and in T20is, he smashed 401 runs for the Kangaroos. One of the greatest pullers in the game, Ponting will always be remembered for bringing aggression to the gentleman’s game.
*Stats updated till 11/07/22.
2. Kumar Sangakkara
Another Sri Lankan on the list, Kumar Sangakkara has been one of the greatest servants of the game of cricket. Even after taking retirement from the international circuit, Sangakkara has continuously been associated with Cricket through broadcasting and coaching stints.
His stature in world cricket is no less than that of a legendary wicketkeeper-batsman, one of the best ever to grace the sport. Sangakkara is 2nd on the list of the batsmen with the most runs in international cricket. He has amassed a total of 28016 international runs across all formats, out of which, 12400 runs have come in Tests, while 14234 runs have been scored in ODIs.
He has also scored 1382 runs in T20Is for Sri Lanka. Currently, he is the Director of Cricket Operations at Rajasthan Royals, one of the oldest franchises of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
*Stats updated till 11/07/22.
1. Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar, widely regarded as the God of Cricket, is the batsman with the most runs in international cricket history in all formats. Tendulkar, who started playing international cricket at the age of 16, had a 24-year long stint in the international circuit, the longest ever stint in the history of international cricket.
Throughout his time, he gave innumerable moments of joy to Indian cricket fans and cricket fans, in general. Sachin amassed 34357 runs, a record which seems impossible to scale even with the diversity of formats in modern-day cricket. The only man to score 100 international centuries, Sachin 15921 runs in 200 Tests and 18426 runs in 463 ODIs. He could play only one T20I for team India and he could score only 10 runs in that game.
*Stats updated till 11/07/22.