Top 5 Test run-scorers in 2017
Being the oldest format of the game, Test cricket has always offered freedom to the players to perform spontaneously. It brings out the best in a player and allows them to exhibit their natural talent.
The chain of discrete events carried out by the batters and bowlers permits a batsman 5 long days under the sun to bat twice and score as much runs as he can. Once he is on the pitch, it's a battle between him and the bowler and the batsman has to attack or defend accordingly in order to keep frustrating the opponent.
2017 was a fantastic year for the fans of Test cricket. A total of six batsmen amassed over 1000 runs in total and here are the 5 most run-getters in Tests in 2017:
#5 Dimuth Karunaratne ― 1031 runs
Although Sri Lanka did not have a very good time this year, this man made it to this list by registering 1031 runs in 13 matches averaging 39.65. Among the top-scorers, he played the most number of innings in 2017.
His best innings came when he made 196 against Pakistan in UAE. This man picked up 3 centuries and 4 half-centuries and went out for a duck twice.
Karunaratne will surely look forward to scoring big runs in 2018 as well and gift his team a year full of success and betterment.
#4 Virat Kohli ― 1059 runs
The Indian skipper topped the ODI run-scoring list and is the only batsman this year to hit 1000+ runs in both formats. The batting genius undoubtedly had an amazing year and played his career best innings of 243 runs against Sri Lanka in his hometown Delhi this month.
Kohli registered a total of 1059 runs in 10 matches with an average of 75.64. He smashed a fifty and 5 hundreds, 3 of which were converted into double-centuries and helped him overcome the landmark of 5000 Test runs.
The captain of the Men in Blue will start the new calendar year in a series against the Proteas where he and his team will fight to end the 25-year long tale of failure of winning a Test series in South Africa.
#3 Dean Elgar ― 1128 runs
With his career best innings of 199 runs that he played against Bangladesh in Potchefstroom, Dean Elgar posted a total of 1128 runs for his team throughout this year. He also became the only 12th batsman to get out on 199.
The left-handed batsman smashed 5 tons and 4 fifties in 2017 maintaining an average of 53.71. He smacked 143 fours that also makes him the highest boundary hitter in Tests this year.
The 30-year-old will definitely look back fondly on an impressive 2017 and will look to achieve more feats next year.
#2 Cheteshwar Pujara ― 1140 runs
Pujara is following the top spot on this list with his total of 1140 runs in Tests this year. With an average of 67.05, Pujara scored 4 centuries and 5 half-centuries in 11 matches. His best innings this year came against Australia when he scored 202 runs at Ranchi.
The 29-year-old never looks tired of scoring runs and is always ready to fly to new heights. With his calm and composed batting, this man has become a very important part of the Indian Test side.
A batsman of his stature will surely look to add more improvement to his performance and statistics in 2018 as well.
#1 Steve Smith ― 1305 runs
Steven Peter Devereux Smith is the leading run-scorer of year-2017 and deservedly so. The Aussie skipper helped his team regain the Ashes title. And 'helped' is really an understatement, with such batting performance Smith really controlled, if not decided, the fate of the match.
His career best innings of 239 runs came against England in the 3rd Ashes Test at WACA this month. Including the 3 centuries in the Ashes, Smith scored a total of 6 centuries and 3 half-centuries this year.
The captain of the Baggy Greens is also at no. 1 in ICC Rankings for Test batsmen with his career best rating of 947. With the highest average of 76.76 among the top-scorers, Smith had a fantastic year and will also look to perform the same in years to come.
