Cricket has produced some outstanding batsmen who have scored tonnes of runs over the years. Here are the cricketers with the most runs in international cricket-
| Sl. No. | Player | Country | Span | Total Matches | Total Innings | Total Runs |
| 1 | Sachin Tendulkar | India | 1989-2013 | 664 | 782 | 34357 |
| 2 | Kumar Sangakkara | Sri Lanka | 2000-2015 | 594 | 666 | 28016 |
| 3 | Ricky Ponting | Australia | 1995-2012 | 560 | 668 | 27483 |
| 4 | Mahela Jayawardene | Sri Lanka | 1997-2015 | 652 | 725 | 25957 |
| 5 | Jacques Kallis | South Africa | 1995-2014 | 519 | 617 | 25534 |
| 6 | Rahul Dravid | India | 1996-2012 | 509 | 605 | 24208 |
| 7 | Virat Kohli | India | 2008-Present | 458 | 511 | 23650 |
| 8 | Brian Lara | West Indies | 1990-2007 | 430 | 521 | 22358 |
| 9 | Sanath Jayasuriya | Sri Lanka | 1989-2011 | 586 | 651 | 21032 |
| 10 | Shivnarine Chanderpaul | West Indies | 1994-2015 | 454 | 553 | 20988 |
1. Sachin Tendulkar
Test Cricket- Matches- 200, Innings- 329, Runs- 15,921
ODI Cricket- Matches- 463, Innings- 452, Runs- 18,426
T20I Cricket- Matches- 1, Innings- 1, Runs- 10
The ‘God of Cricket’ undoubtedly tops the chart and has scored the most runs in international cricket with 34357 runs at an insane career average of 48.52 and 100 hundred! His best score stands at 248*. Will his record number of runs and hundreds be ever broken?
2. Kumar Sangakkara
Test Cricket- Matches- 134, Innings- 233, Runs- 12,400
ODI Cricket- Matches- 404, Innings- 380, Runs- 14,234
T20I Cricket- Matches- 56, Innings- 53, Runs- 1,382
Kumar Sangakkara is 2nd when it comes to most runs in international cricket and is probably the best wicket-keeper batsman the game has ever seen. He has scored a total of 28,016 runs at an average of 46.77 with 63 centuries along the journey.
3. Ricky Ponting
Test Cricket- Matches- 168, Innings- 287, Runs- 13,378
ODI Cricket- Matches- 375, Innings- 365, Runs- 13,704
T20I Cricket- Matches- 17, Innings- 16, Runs- 401
Ricky Ponting, whom the 90s kids used to think has ‘spring in his bat’ takes the 3rd spot with respect to most runs in international cricket with 27,483 runs at an average just under 46. He has a total of 71 hundreds which is the 2nd most at the moment.
4. Mahela Jayawardene
Test Cricket- Matches- 149, Innings- 252, Runs- 11,814
ODI Cricket- Matches- 448, Innings- 418, Runs- 12,650
T20I Cricket- Matches- 55, Innings- 55, Runs- 1,493
Kumar Sangakkara along with Mahela Jayawardene used to be a deadly duo and the nightmare for the bowlers. With over 25,000 international runs and over 50 hundreds including one in a World Cup final, Jayawardene is one of the greatest batsmen the cricketing world has ever seen.
5. Jacques Kallis
Test Cricket- Matches- 166, Innings- 280, Runs- 13,289
ODI Cricket- Matches- 328, Innings- 314, Runs- 11,579
T20I Cricket- Matches- 25, Innings- 23, Runs- 666
Jacques Kallis grabs the 5th spot in the list of most runs in international cricket. Kallis is probably the greatest allrounder ever seen in cricket and there he is actually acknowledged as Rahul Dravid + Zaheer Khan = Jacques Kallis given his numbers in international cricket.
6. Rahul Dravid
Test Cricket- Matches- 164, Innings- 286, Runs- 13,288
ODI Cricket- Matches- 344, Innings- 318, Runs- 10,889
T20I Cricket- Matches- 1, Innings- 1, Runs- 31
The current coach of Indian Cricket team, ‘The Wall’ whose resilience and patience was perhaps second to none is at 6th place in this legendary list of cricketers with most runs in international cricket. Dravid has scored a total of 24,208 runs at an average of 45.11 scoring 48 centuries. Interestingly, in Test cricket, he has scored just 1 run less than Jacques Kallis!
7. Virat Kohli
Test Cricket- Matches- 101, Innings- 171, Runs- 8,043
ODI Cricket- Matches- 260, Innings- 251, Runs- 12,311
T20I Cricket- Matches- 97, Innings- 89, Runs- 3,296
‘King Kohli’ with 23,650 runs and 70 centuries stands at 7th place at the moment, but one can very well expect to see him surpass Ricky Ponting’s record of 71 centuries and also leap-frog everyone and finish in the top 2 position of most runs in international cricket.
8. Brian Lara
Test Cricket- Matches- 131, Innings- 232, Runs- 11,953
ODI Cricket- Matches- 299, Innings- 289, Runs- 10,405
T20I Cricket- Matches- DNP
Brian Lara, who is probably the greatest batsman that West Indies has ever produced is ranked 8th in most runs in international cricket. Apart from piling up a total of 22,358 runs at an insane average of 46.28 with 53 centuries, what stands out is his personal best of 400 runs not out vs England which is the highest score scored by any individual in international cricket. Mind-boggling numbers!
9. Sanath Jayasuriya
Test Cricket- Matches- 110, Innings- 188, Runs- 6,973
ODI Cricket- Matches- 445, Innings- 433, Runs- 13,430
T20I Cricket- Matches- 31, Innings- 30, Runs- 629
Aggressive batting and Sanath Jayasuriya used to be two synonyms during his time and his career strike rate of 81.17 is the best proof of it. The flashy left-handed opening batsman from Sri Lanka is 9th in this list of most runs in international cricket with over 21,000 runs. He is someone who could have been a destructive T20I batsman had the format been inaugurated during his prime time.
10. Shivnarine Chanderpaul
Test Cricket- Matches- 164, Innings- 280, Runs- 11,867
ODI Cricket- Matches- 268, Innings- 251, Runs- 8,778
T20I Cricket- Matches- 22, Innings- 22, Runs- 343
Shivnarine Chanderpaul grabs the final spot and currently is the 10th batsman with the most runs in international cricket. Apart from his staggering numbers of over 20,000 runs at an average of 45.72, his unique batting stance and the black tapes beneath his eyes used to be the stand-outs.
FAQs
- Who has scored the most runs in international cricket? – Sachin Tendulkar
- Who has scored the most centuries in international cricket? – Ricky Ponting
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