Top 5 opening batsmen with most runs in Tests

#1 Alastair Cook

Cook is well on his way to break a few more records

Alastair Cook gave an indication of the things to come after he received a surprise call-up to the England team on a sluggish surface at Nagpur against a bowling attack which featured Anil Kumble and Harbhajan. Despite the odds not being in his favour, he totalled 164 runs in the Test with a stellar second-innings ton, showing his mettle on seemingly alien conditions.

10 years since his Test debut, Cook has established himself as a prolific and remorseless run-getter with his sights now set on much bigger things. Suddenly, Sachin Tendulkar’s monstrous record of 15,921 runs from 200 Tests does not look too far away from the England skipper’s reach.

(Note: All Statistics below are accurate as of 29^th October 2016 upon Alastair Cook’s dismissal in the first innings of the second Test against Bangladesh at Mirpur)

Overall Career: 10,629 runs from 242 innings at an average of 46.82 with 29 centuries and 51 fifties

Runs as an opener: 10,002 runs from 229 innings at an average of 46.30 with 27 centuries and 49 fifties