Most Hundreds By A Captain In Test Cricket

It is safe to say that Test Cricket is the toughest format of this beautiful game of cricket. Also called the longest format of the game, it tests a cricketers’ temperament, technique, hunger to win, and will to survive for longer periods of time.

It is also important to understand that captaining a Test team is a lot more difficult than captaining in the other two formats of the game. Test Cricket is played in sessions and the captain of a team is responsible for making the right decisions in every session to stay on top of the game.

Over the years, the game has seen some finest captains in Test Cricket. Interestingly, only a cricketing acumen or leadership skills aren’t the only requirements to become a successful captain.

These cricketers also need to ensure that they make a significant contribution with their own performances as well. And, to further shed light on that, we have compiled 6 players who have led Test teams and has the most hundreds as captain.

Most Hundreds By A Captain In Test Cricket

Steve Waugh- 15 Centuries

Legendary Australian cricketer, Steve Waugh finds his name at the sixth position on the list. He is counted amongst the greatest captains in the history of Australia Cricket. He led the Australian side during their most successful years in world cricket. Steve Waugh has an outstanding record as captain of Australia’s Test team. He was as impressive at home as was in the away Tests.

In fact, he has the best win percentage as captain in Test Cricket. He led Australia in 57 Tests and managed to win 41 matches with a win percentage of 71.92. He also ensured that he led the way with the bat as during his tenure as Test Cricket, he hit as many as 15 centuries.

Steve Smith- 15 Centuries

Australia’s newly-appointed vice-captain, Steve Smith is regarded as, arguably, the best batsman in Test Cricket in the current era of the game. Smith has an exceptional record with the bat in Test Cricket.

Since his arrival in the longest format of the game, he has piled on runs consistently with the bat. He currently has 7757 runs in 81 Tests at an average of 60.6.

Smith has 27 centuries and 33 half-centuries to his name in Test Cricket. He led Australia in 35 Tests, of which Australia won 19 and lost 10. During his captaincy stint, Smith hit 15 centuries in Test Cricket.

Allan Border- 15 Centuries

Allan Border is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers ever to play for Australia. He held the record the most capped player in Test Cricket until it was broken by Steve Waugh. Apart from being a terrific leader, he was one of the best batsmen during his playing days.

He scored 11, 174 runs in Test Cricket- a record which was later broken by Brian Lara in 2006. To date, Allan Border has the second most number of matches as captain in Test Cricket only behind Graeme Smith. He led the team in 93 Tests, winning 52 and losing 22 games. During his captaincy career, he hit 15 centuries for Australia in Test Cricket.

Ricky Ponting- 19 Centuries

Regarded as Australia’s most successful captain in the history of cricket, Ricky Ponting finds his name at the number three position. The former Australian cricketer was an outstanding leader as well as a batsman. His hunger to win matches was unmatchable.

He led a team that was termed invincible. Apart from his leadership skills, he scored heavily with the bat across formats. He is currently the highest run-scorer for Australia and second-highest overall in Test Cricket. During his captaincy career, Ponting hit as many as 19 centuries in Test Cricket.

Virat Kohli- 20 Centuries

Virat Kohli left everyone in surprise after he stepped down from the captaincy in Test Cricket. He is no longer the captain of Indian Cricket in any format of the game.

However, looking at his successful captaincy career in Test Cricket, his decision to step down from leadership raised a lot of eyebrows. Nevertheless, he is India’s most successful captain in the history of Test Cricket. He led the nation in 68 Tests and won 40 matches out of them with a win percentage of 58.82.

Graeme Smith- 25 Centuries

Graeme Smith is South Africa’s most successful captain in its cricketing history. No other cricketer has managed to win more matches than Graeme Smith as captain in Test Cricket. He took over the captaincy at a very young age and Smith turned his team into world-beaters.

He led South Africa in 109 Tests and won 53 matches out of them. Smith has hit the most number of centuries as captain in Test Cricket with 25 to his name. In his illustrious Test Cricket career, he scored 9265 runs in 117 Tests at an average of 48.2.

*Stats updated till 17/01/2022.