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The best fourth innings Test knocks of all time

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Harsh Thakor

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In order of merit I have listed my top 4th innings batting efforts of all time.

1.Brian Lara's 153n.o at Barbados v Australia in 1999

An innings of a genius on a broken track combining the skill of a technician or a doctor with the creativity of a musician or poet and the ice-cool nerves of a military general.Above all he won the game in a 4th innings run chase scoring 153 out of 308.He displayed the cutting edge of temperament with the willow,manouvering the ball through the gaps.

2.Sunil Gavaskar's 96 at Bangalore
Although it did not win the game brought India within touching distnace of a famous win on a broken track with the ball turning square.Gavaskar stuck out like a magician and it was a revelation witnessing his batting.

3.Sunil Gavaskar's 221 at the Oval in 1979

Arguably the best double century ever scored in England.Chasing a mammoth target of 438 runs Gavaskar'[s epic,faultless 221 all but won the game.Gavaskar dispatched every bad ball to the boundary and waht seemed impposible looked a probable victory till he was dimissed.Bit for umpiring blunders in the closing stages surely India would have won the game.Some of Gavaskar's strokes were regal and it was amost the perfect test innings.

4.Gordon Greenidge's 214 n.o at Lords in 1984
The greatest batting blitzkreig in a4th innings run -chase which even a Tendulkar,Viv Richards or Bradman would be proud to equal.It was like a black Barry Richards batting.A phenomenal exhibition of controlled agression like a bomber raiding an airbase.Chasing 314 for a win the calypsos cruised home by 9 wickets.

5.Derek Randall's 174 at Melbourne in the Centenary test in 1977

A cricketing classic more like seeing poetry or hearing a symphony at a concert.Derek Randall displayed a brilliant array of strokes against the bowling of Dennis Lillee reminding one of a great military counter-attack.Chasing 463 for a win England were in sights oif a historic win before Randall was dismissed.Above all the knock won the day for test cricket.

6.Neil Havey's 151 n.o.v South Africa in 1951

Chasing a target of 336 runs on a bad wicket Harvey displayed the skill of a medical surgeon.

7.Sachin Tendulkar's 136 at Madras in 1999 v Pakistan in the 1st test

An innings even Bradman would have been proud to play and Tendulkar played cricket's perfect innings on a bad wicket.When all seemed lost Tendulkar turned the match and took India to a threshold of famous win.A back spasm cost him his wicket but morally he deserved to win the game for India.Sachin was technician and surgeon combined into one.

8.Mark Waugh's 125 at Durban in the 2nd test v.South Africa in 1997-98

With great technical skill and improvization Mark Waugh took Australia on coarse to a famous win chasing a target of 254 runs on a difficult track.It was batting at it's sheer best .

9.Alan Border's 123 n.o at Old Trafford in 1981

With a broken finger Border defied the English bowling attack scoring an unbeaten 123 out of 402 with a broken finger.Chasing a mammoth target of 506 runs for victory Border won his team pride who reached a score of 402 runs to lose honourably.

10.Gundappa Vishwanath's 112 at Trinidad in 1976
won the game for India who made a record 4th innings winning score of 406.Vishy's driving and cutting paved the way for an Indian win.

11.Virendra Sehwag's 83 at Calcutta v England in 2008

One of the most agressive match-winning knocks which set the base for an unlikely winning chase of 387 runs .

12.Asif Iqbal's 135 at Kingston in 1977
Classic batting against Garner,Marshall,Roberts and Croft with a blistering exhibition of all types of strokes.One of the best innings played by a no 6 batsmen ever.

13.Viv Richard's 108 n.o at Delhi in 1987-88
Masterly batting on a bad track displaying remarkable controlled agression and winning the game for West Indies.

For artistry and entertainnment Derek Randal's 174 would win,for technical perfection both of Gavaskar's heroic innings were on top,in mastering bad wickets to win games Lara and Harvey's knocks are neck to neck while for aggression Gordon Greenidge's knock is simply on a different pedestal.Had Sachin's 136 versus Pakistan won the game for India it may well have been in the top 4 of all.
 
I saw number 1 and number 7 so can't comment on the rest.

I'd take number 7.

Special knock in a special Test. :wasim
 
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^ IMO, Afridi played the best knock of his life in the 2nd innings of that game.
 
Azhar Ali recent innings vs Sri Lanka deserve a mention. It was not against mighty west indies attack but looking at match situation he deserve a mention in the list.
 
Sidilicious said:
Agreed. Played with brains. Was that his only century in test cricket?
Click to expand...

No, he got one in WI and back to back vs India in 2006 but most of they were typical Afridi knocks.

The one in Chennai was terrific batting.
 
3.Sunil Gavaskar's 221 at the Oval in 1979

Arguably the best double century ever scored in England.Chasing a mammoth target of 438 runs Gavaskar'[s epic,faultless 221 all but won the game.Gavaskar dispatched every bad ball to the boundary and waht seemed impposible looked a probable victory till he was dimissed.Bit for umpiring blunders in the closing stages surely India would have won the game.Some of Gavaskar's strokes were regal and it was amost the perfect test innings.

Victory was denied not only due to umpiring blunders but due to negative tactics by the English bowlers, like time wasting etc - at one point England bowled just six overs in 45 minutes or so, the wasted time meant that India had to chase 110 off 20 overs in the end, which is a big ask in test cricket especially in the 70s. There were some tactical errors by India, such as sending Vishwanath into bat after Yashpal Sharma when quick runs were needed.

'Gavaskar's 221 should, at the very least, be bracketed with Stan McCabe's 232 at Trent Bridge and Wally Hammond's 240 at Lord's,' said Len Hutton after the match.
 
Sidilicious said:
Md Hanif vs WI? 330 odd score?

VVS 81 vs Aus at Mohali?
Click to expand...

Sorry,VVS could well have made it -maybe in the1ST 10 or even 8.I still prefer the listed innings of Havey,Shehwag,Mark Waugh,Gavaskar,Lara etc assessing strokeplay, technique ,situation and nature of wicket.Maybe Laxman could replace Vishy at around no 9 I regret leaving him out. Thanks for suggestion .
 
IndianWillow said:
3.Sunil Gavaskar's 221 at the Oval in 1979

Arguably the best double century ever scored in England.Chasing a mammoth target of 438 runs Gavaskar'[s epic,faultless 221 all but won the game.Gavaskar dispatched every bad ball to the boundary and waht seemed impposible looked a probable victory till he was dimissed.Bit for umpiring blunders in the closing stages surely India would have won the game.Some of Gavaskar's strokes were regal and it was amost the perfect test innings.

Victory was denied not only due to umpiring blunders but due to negative tactics by the English bowlers, like time wasting etc - at one point England bowled just six overs in 45 minutes or so, the wasted time meant that India had to chase 110 off 20 overs in the end, which is a big ask in test cricket especially in the 70s. There were some tactical errors by India, such as sending Vishwanath into bat after Yashpal Sharma when quick runs were needed.


'Gavaskar's 221 should, at the very least, be bracketed with Stan McCabe's 232 at Trent Bridge and Wally Hammond's 240 at Lord's,' said Len Hutton after the match.
Click to expand...

@Indian Willow

His 96 was an innings even Bradman and Tendulkar would not have executed.Infact he was wrongly adjudged caught.Anyawy thanks for support.Could well have even been by no 1of which I have emotional memories.Had Vishy been sent in earlier by Venkat instead of Kapil Dev India would have acheived a historic win surely!Technically a master piece.
 
6.Neil Havey's 151 n.o.v South Africa in 1951

Chasing a target of 336 runs on a bad wicket Harvey displayed the skill of a medical surgeon.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a brilliant innings, what did he do, take their tonsils out.
 
Well i only saw :sachin's 136 and that was one top innings had my heart in mouth while he was batting until :saqi did it a great Test match it was :14:
 
Re: The best 4th Innings Test knocks of all time

Harsh Thakor said:
@Indian Willow

His 96 was an innings even Bradman and Tendulkar would not have executed.Infact he was wrongly adjudged caught.Anyawy thanks for support.Could well have even been by no 1of which I have emotional memories.Had Vishy been sent in earlier by Venkat instead of Kapil Dev India would have acheived a historic win surely!Technically a master piece.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure he had countless lives in that 96 a lot of plumb lbws not given

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk
 
Although in a losing cause, Nick Astle scored 222 from only 168 balls for NZ against England, with his 2nd hundred coming in only 39 balls including scoring 38 from 7 balls off Caddick (spread across 2 overs) .

http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/63981.html

This game will be remembered for perhaps the most glorious failure in the history of Test cricket. When an injured Cairns walked out to join Astle late on the fourth afternoon, New Zealand were 333 for nine, still 217 short of a wildly improbable victory. What happened next had to be seen to be believed. Astle, 134 at the fall of the ninth wicket, proceeded to treat England's attack as if they had been drafted in from the local kindergarten. He smashed his way to by far the fastest double-century in Tests and briefly raised hopes of a jaw-dropping, eye-popping win. In the end, England, thanks to their earlier all-round efforts, prevailed. But this was, and will always be, Astle's match.

A cricket ball had perhaps never been hit so cleanly, so often. Astle's first hundred had come from a brisk 114 deliveries, but he was merely playing himself in. The carnage began in earnest when Hussain took the second new ball: the next four overs, even though they included a wicket maiden from Caddick, yielded 61 runs. Hoggard, unplayable on the second day, was smashed for 41 in two overs - and out of the attack. So Astle turned his attention to Caddick, steaming in with the confidence of a man who had already grabbed six wickets in the innings. But in seven balls spread across two overs, Astle sprayed graffiti all over Caddick's figures by smacking him for 38. One six flew over third man, another landed on the roof of the stand at extra cover, and three more - over cover, mid-wicket, and straight down the ground - came in successive deliveries as the home sections of the crowd began to sing and dance in disbelief. England's supporters, so raucous moments before, were stunned into silence.

Another six off Flintoff, a gentle sweep for a single off Giles, and Astle had raced from 101 to 200 in a scarcely believable 39 balls. He reached his maiden Test double-century in 153, smashing the record - set by Adam Gilchrist at Johannesburg just three weeks earlier - by 59 deliveries. He had taken 217 minutes, three more than Bradman at Leeds in 1930, when the balls were not totted up (but over-rates were generally higher). It was as though Astle had taken two seconds off the 100 metres record.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/155005.html
Click to expand...
 
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This one from Kohli, right up there for me now. What an effort/
 
Mark Taylor, "I can't think of a better Test century on day 5".
 
Aman said:
Mark Taylor, "I can't think of a better Test century on day 5".
Click to expand...

Given the rate at which he played and the odds of a SC player doing well in Aus, this is just right up there. There was no chance of a win, he created that chance with his unreal effort.
 
If he had won it, it would definitely have earned him a niche in 4th innings best knocks of all time.
 
It might have been a flat Adelaide deck, but it was Day 5, assisting Lyon, and Kohli was under real pressure.

And he played exactly the sort of innings that Tendulkar's lack of character made him chronically unable to play in the fourth innings.

So congratulations to Kohli on a brilliant knock.
 
One of the best innings ever in a 4th innings in a losing cause or in any losing cause ever was played by Kohli today.It was a magnificient exhibition of controlled strokeplay like an architect and artist rolled into one.Some of the most audacious drives were executed against the turning ball.
 
Dr_Bassim said:
If he had won it, it would definitely have earned him a niche in 4th innings best knocks of all time.
Click to expand...

One of the best innings ever in a 4th innings in a losing cause or in any losing cause ever was played by Kohli today.It was a magnificient exhibition of controlled strokeplay like an architect and artist rolled into one.Some of the most audacious drives were executed against the turning ball.
 
Kudos to Kohli for the positive approach and thinking of winning it all the way.....Great batting ! no regrets if they lose like this. We dont want draws.
 
Gavaskar in Bangalore was a class act , it was pure mine field .....

Last innings by the little master , one of the best from him.
 
Harsh Thakor said:
4.Gordon Greenidge's 214 n.o at Lords in 1984
The greatest batting blitzkreig in a4th innings run -chase which even a Tendulkar,Viv Richards or Bradman would be proud to equal.It was like a black Barry Richards batting.A phenomenal exhibition of controlled agression like a bomber raiding an airbase.Chasing 314 for a win the calypsos cruised home by 9 wickets.
Click to expand...

Saw it. The pitch had gone completely flat. Botham had taken an eightfer in the first innings but was exhausted by that effort and powerless to stop Greenidge. The only wicket that fell was to a run-out.

5.Derek Randall's 174 at Melbourne in the Centenary test in 1977
Click to expand...

That was the match where the great DK clanged Rags on the head. No helmets in those days. Rags rubbed his head and chirped "No point hitting me there Dennis, nothing to damage!"
 
Inzi's 95 vs Aus.

Also Azhar Ali deserves a mention. They chased 360 in like 63 overs!
 
Ricky Ponting's 156 vs England at Old Trafford in 2005.

Australia kept losing wickets chasing a total of over 400+ and this was right after the Edgbaston defeat so Australia had to avoid two defeats in a row. Ponting stepped up with a warrior-like performance, took it right to Harmison, Hoggard, Flintoff and Jones in a fantastic innings, and eventually the tail-enders managed to stick around long enough to draw it for Australia.
 
Sangakkara's 192 vs Australia in Hobart. Sangakkara batted with the tail and was wrongly given out.

 
Strike Rate said:
Azhar Ali recent innings vs Sri Lanka deserve a mention. It was not against mighty west indies attack but looking at match situation he deserve a mention in the list.
Click to expand...

This. I was hoping to see a mention from the recent innings vs Sri Lanka, because at the end of the day, the team chased 300+ in two sessions.
 
if virat could have won the match with the tail no doubt this innings would have matched the LARA 150 knock but coz india didn't win it won be in the top 5 but def 1 of the best in the last decade
 
Amir said:
Inzi's 95 vs Aus.

Also Azhar Ali deserves a mention. They chased 360 in like 63 overs!
Click to expand...

Surprisingly no one's mentioning Azhar's top knock which was under much more pressure.

A target of 305 after lunch, in 57 overs on day 5 pitch, with the world's best spinner Herath bowling at him.
 
Really outstanding and memorable innings from Kohli. Full of belief, brio and bijouterie.
 
Quite a few in last couple of years. The one where the stakes were highest was Gabba 2021. In terms of breathtaking batting, Stokes at Headingley was best. Then there was Kusal Mendis knock in South Africa.

Root and Bairstow ones were good but bowling attack was poor and it was home wickets and flat tracks too.
 
Some recent entries 2019 onwards in this -

1) Rishabh Pant & Shubman Gill vs Australia at Brisbane, 2021
2) Ben Stokes 135* vs Australia at Headingley, 2019
3) Kyle Mayers 210* vs Bangladesh at Chittagong, 2021
4) Kusal Mendis 153* vs South Africa at Durban, 2019
5) Jonny Bairstow 136 vs New Zealand at Nottingham, 2022
 
And Abdullah Shafique 160* vs Sri Lanka in Galle (2022)
 
Nothing better than

1) Ben Stokes 135 vs Aus ---saw it live in the stadium .. too good

2) Gilly vs Pak - Hobart i think ... probably the best innigs against an ATG attack
 
The two greatest in recent times :-

1. Ben Stokes 135 vs Aus at home
2. Rishabh Pant 89* vs Aus away in their fortress in the series decider( a series that Aussies were expected to win to take revenge of 2018 loss).
 
Harsh Thakor said:
In order of merit I have listed my top 4th innings batting efforts of all time.

1.Brian Lara's 153n.o at Barbados v Australia in 1999

An innings of a genius on a broken track combining the skill of a technician or a doctor with the creativity of a musician or poet and the ice-cool nerves of a military general.Above all he won the game in a 4th innings run chase scoring 153 out of 308.He displayed the cutting edge of temperament with the willow,manouvering the ball through the gaps.

2.Sunil Gavaskar's 96 at Bangalore
Although it did not win the game brought India within touching distnace of a famous win on a broken track with the ball turning square.Gavaskar stuck out like a magician and it was a revelation witnessing his batting.

3.Sunil Gavaskar's 221 at the Oval in 1979

Arguably the best double century ever scored in England.Chasing a mammoth target of 438 runs Gavaskar'[s epic,faultless 221 all but won the game.Gavaskar dispatched every bad ball to the boundary and waht seemed impposible looked a probable victory till he was dimissed.Bit for umpiring blunders in the closing stages surely India would have won the game.Some of Gavaskar's strokes were regal and it was amost the perfect test innings.

4.Gordon Greenidge's 214 n.o at Lords in 1984
The greatest batting blitzkreig in a4th innings run -chase which even a Tendulkar,Viv Richards or Bradman would be proud to equal.It was like a black Barry Richards batting.A phenomenal exhibition of controlled agression like a bomber raiding an airbase.Chasing 314 for a win the calypsos cruised home by 9 wickets.

5.Derek Randall's 174 at Melbourne in the Centenary test in 1977

A cricketing classic more like seeing poetry or hearing a symphony at a concert.Derek Randall displayed a brilliant array of strokes against the bowling of Dennis Lillee reminding one of a great military counter-attack.Chasing 463 for a win England were in sights oif a historic win before Randall was dismissed.Above all the knock won the day for test cricket.

6.Neil Havey's 151 n.o.v South Africa in 1951

Chasing a target of 336 runs on a bad wicket Harvey displayed the skill of a medical surgeon.

7.Sachin Tendulkar's 136 at Madras in 1999 v Pakistan in the 1st test

An innings even Bradman would have been proud to play and Tendulkar played cricket's perfect innings on a bad wicket.When all seemed lost Tendulkar turned the match and took India to a threshold of famous win.A back spasm cost him his wicket but morally he deserved to win the game for India.Sachin was technician and surgeon combined into one.

8.Mark Waugh's 125 at Durban in the 2nd test v.South Africa in 1997-98

With great technical skill and improvization Mark Waugh took Australia on coarse to a famous win chasing a target of 254 runs on a difficult track.It was batting at it's sheer best .

9.Alan Border's 123 n.o at Old Trafford in 1981

With a broken finger Border defied the English bowling attack scoring an unbeaten 123 out of 402 with a broken finger.Chasing a mammoth target of 506 runs for victory Border won his team pride who reached a score of 402 runs to lose honourably.

10.Gundappa Vishwanath's 112 at Trinidad in 1976
won the game for India who made a record 4th innings winning score of 406.Vishy's driving and cutting paved the way for an Indian win.

11.Virendra Sehwag's 83 at Calcutta v England in 2008

One of the most agressive match-winning knocks which set the base for an unlikely winning chase of 387 runs .

12.Asif Iqbal's 135 at Kingston in 1977
Classic batting against Garner,Marshall,Roberts and Croft with a blistering exhibition of all types of strokes.One of the best innings played by a no 6 batsmen ever.

13.Viv Richard's 108 n.o at Delhi in 1987-88
Masterly batting on a bad track displaying remarkable controlled agression and winning the game for West Indies.

For artistry and entertainnment Derek Randal's 174 would win,for technical perfection both of Gavaskar's heroic innings were on top,in mastering bad wickets to win games Lara and Harvey's knocks are neck to neck while for aggression Gordon Greenidge's knock is simply on a different pedestal.Had Sachin's 136 versus Pakistan won the game for India it may well have been in the top 4 of all.
Click to expand...

Failures and chokes like no7 should not be on this list.
 
AB de Villiers 104* in a 400+ run chase in Perth, 2008.

That was SA's first series win in Australia ever.
 
In 4th innings chases, if you are not there till the end to see your team to victory, it doesn't count.

I'd take a 40* of 200 balls by some player in a low scoring chase over a 96 by Gavaskar in Bangalore - no matter how much that knock is praised. Or a 100 by Yasir Shah for that matter. Equal to me.

Otherwise the likes of Asad Shafiq have played the most heroic innings of all time in losing causes - repeatedly.
 
1.) Gill's 91 in Gabba test
2.) Shafique's 160* against Sri Lanka

Shafique's 160 is special because he opened the inning and stayed there till the end. :inti
 
That lara inns quite rightly deserves to be top of the list. That WI side was pretty poor back then and in terminal decline and Lara pretty much won his side 2 matches almost on his own. To chase down 300+ batting last against an ATG bowling attack was immense.

Batting last on a wearing pitch against 2 world class leg spinners and 2 world class fast bowlers, so its not exactly like he would have got any rest bite or could he maybe single out a weaker bowler in line up to go after.
 
Amjid Javed said:
That lara inns quite rightly deserves to be top of the list. That WI side was pretty poor back then and in terminal decline and Lara pretty much won his side 2 matches almost on his own. To chase down 300+ batting last against an ATG bowling attack was immense.

Batting last on a wearing pitch against 2 world class leg spinners and 2 world class fast bowlers, so its not exactly like he would have got any rest bite or could he maybe single out a weaker bowler in line up to go after.
Click to expand...

Definitely the best innings ever IMO.

Not only was it against great bowlers, but those same bowlers proved themselves over and over.

Also considering the fact chases like that were few and far between those days just makes it even more special.
 
Some top innings in the list from OP.

However, glaring omissions include:

1. Ben Stokes at Headingley. One of the all time great innings. Certainly ahead of the innings from Gavaskar and Tendulkar that are included in the OP's list (not saying Stokes is a better player then these two of course and no disrespect intended).

2. I would say Abdullah's match winning innings on a turning Galle wicket -batting for 5 hours and seeing the game through - has to rate higher then the Gavaskar/Tendu knocks. Remember Aussies were thrashed on this wicket just a week or so ago.

But still a great list. Some amazing knocks.
 
The Googly said:
Some top innings in the list from OP.

However, glaring omissions include:

1. Ben Stokes at Headingley. One of the all time great innings. Certainly ahead of the innings from Gavaskar and Tendulkar that are included in the OP's list (not saying Stokes is a better player then these two of course and no disrespect intended).

2. I would say Abdullah's match winning innings on a turning Galle wicket -batting for 5 hours and seeing the game through - has to rate higher then the Gavaskar/Tendu knocks. Remember Aussies were thrashed on this wicket just a week or so ago.

But still a great list. Some amazing knocks.
Click to expand...

How do you rate Abdullahs knock better then Sachins?

Yes the target was better and the pitch was turning but lets be honest SL had 1 really good spinner in Jayasuria. The rest were mediocre pie chuckers. Im not saying his inns wasnt good but i wouldnt rate it over sachins.

Sachins knock was in a high pressure pakistan vs india match and runs scored against Two W's and a prime Saqlain.

India are seen as best players of spin and saqlain took 20 wickets in the 2 match series. The saqlain vs sachin battle was one if best spin vs master batsmen duals ever seen in a final inns of a test match.
 
The Googly said:
Some top innings in the list from OP.

However, glaring omissions include:

1. Ben Stokes at Headingley. One of the all time great innings. Certainly ahead of the innings from Gavaskar and Tendulkar that are included in the OP's list (not saying Stokes is a better player then these two of course and no disrespect intended).

2. I would say Abdullah's match winning innings on a turning Galle wicket -batting for 5 hours and seeing the game through - has to rate higher then the Gavaskar/Tendu knocks. Remember Aussies were thrashed on this wicket just a week or so ago.

But still a great list. Some amazing knocks.
Click to expand...

Remember this is a thread from 2014...
 
Surprised not a lot of people mentioning kusual mendis 153*. Helped his team chase down 304 from 226-9 against steyn, philander, rabada, olivier, maharaj away from home on a wicket that was no where near flat. Allowing srilanka to go on and become the first asian side to win a test series in Sa. Slightly better then the stokes innings imo.
 
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