5 longest innings in Test history 

#4 Sidney Barnes 234 off 667 deliveries v England at Sydney, 1946

Sidney Barnes

Former Australian opening batsman Sidney Barnes played only 13 Tests but one of his three career centuries is in the record books for being the 4th longest Test innings in terms of balls faced. It is in the record books for another reason too but more on that later.

In the 2nd Test of the 1946-47 Ashes in Australia, the hosts dismissed England for 255 in the first innings and then decided to grind the opposition into the dust.

Opening batsman Sidney Barnes then proceeded to play a cautious innings which spanned 11 minutes short of 11 hours and fetched the batsman 234 runs in 667 deliveries. It was a slow innings by any standards as he struck only 17 boundaries and recorded a strike rate of only 35.08.

However, Sir Donald Bradman's 234 pounded the England attack into submission and Barnes shared a world record 5th wicket partnership of 405 runs, as Australia piled up 659. The record stands to this day. Barnes' painstaking innings, however, did not cost Australia the game as England were all out for 371 and the hosts won the Test match by an innings and 33 runs.