Test cricket is an attritional form of this sport and the batters accumulate the runs by grinding the bowling. The fielding team in return sets an attacking field and bowls tight, wicket-taking lengths, not allowing the batters to get away. The time factor is not applicable for a Test match, at least in the first half of the game and that’s why many times, the proceedings happen at a slow pace.
However, there are instances when a Test match proceeds at the rate of noughts, either thanks to bowlers picking a cluster of wickets or the batters dominating the ball with a flurry of runs. In this article, we will talk about the latter. Here are the instances where the bat had a say over the ball, the whole day, ie, the most runs scored in a single day of a Test match.
Most Runs Scored in a Single Day of a Test Match
| Total Runs | Teams | Day | Result | Venue | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 588 | England (398/6) vs India (190/0) | 2 | Match Drawn | Manchester | 1936 |
| 522 | England (503/2) vs South Africa (19/0) | 2 | ENG won by an innings and 18 runs | Lord’s | 1924 |
| 509 | Sri Lanka (509/9) vs Bangladesh | 2 | SL won by an innings and 198 runs | Colombo | 2002 |
| 508 | England (221/2) vs South Africa (287/6) | 3 | Match Drawn | The Oval | 1935 |
| 506 | England (506/4) vs Pakistan | 1 | ENG won by 74 runs | Rawalpindi | 2022 |
| 496 | England (437/4) vs Pakistan (59/0) | 2 | ENG won by an innings and 129 runs | Nottingham | 1954 |
| 494 | Australia (494/6) vs South Africa | 1 | AUS won by an innings and 114 runs | Sydney | 1910 |
| 492 | South Africa (179/4) vs England (313/4) | 2 | Match Drawn | The Oval | 1935 |
| 491 | New Zealand (29/1 & 195/2) vs England (267/4d) | 3 | Match Drawn | Headingly | 1949 |
| 483 | England (331/4) vs Pakistan (152/6) | 4 | ENG won by an innings and 47 runs | Multan | 2024 |
Key Stats
36 – The instances where 450 or more runs were scored in a single day of a Test match. 2 of them have occurred in 2024, one at Multan between Pakistan & England (483) and the other at Bengaluru (453), between India (231/3) & New Zealand (222/7). It is noteworthy that 483 at Multan makes it to the 10th in this list and England emerged victorious.
8 – Out of the top 10, eight of the highest totals in a day have come involving England. Thrice each, they have been up against South Africa and Pakistan.
1 – The only match to have two issions here is the Oval Test between South Africa and England in 1935. On what was a 3-day Test match, day 2 saw both teams combined to score a whopping 492 runs before eclipsing the next day, hammering 508 runs.
509 – This is the highest a single team has scored in a day. It was achieved by Sri Lanka when they took on Bangladesh in a Test match at Colombo in 2002. The hosts Sri Lanka, won the game convincingly by an innings and 198 runs.
588 – The highest total posted in a day of a Test match and it was the second Test match between England and India at Manchester in the 1936 series. England hammered 398 on day 2 before getting a solid reply from India who made 190/0 to finish Day 2.
6 – The number of games here resulted in wins for a side. England as expected won 4 of those and thrice it was against Pakistan.
