Top 5 No. 3 South African batsmen of all time

3 Jacques Rudolph

Jacques Rudolph

Former left-handed batsman Jacques Rudolph might be a forgotten man in South African cricket but his record at number 3 is quite remarkable, and he batted at the position in 23 out of the 48 Test matches that he played for his country.

Rudolph started off his Test career with a superb 222 not out against Bangladesh at Chittagong back in 2003 and over the next few years, he became a rock for the South African top order.

Rudolph's graceful stroke-making, defensive technique and patience made him the ideal number 3. Centuries followed in New Zealand and Sri Lanka, as he established himself in the team. Rudolph scored 1428 runs in 23 Tests at number 3 and averaged 46.06. He notched up 4 centuries and 5 centuries during his stint at number 3. However, after a string of failures, he was omitted from the side in 2006 and soon after, he took a Kolpak deal to play for Yorkshire in the County Championships. That being said, his claim to being one of South Africa's best ever number 3s is not under dispute.