Top-class against top sides
VVS Laxman made a slow start to Test cricket, but once he found his groove, his stats compared favourably with the best in the world

Of the 23 hundreds VVS Laxman scored in international cricket, ten came against Australia • AFP
Period | Tests | Runs | Average | 100s/ 50s |
Till Dec 1999 | 16 | 626 | 24.07 | 0/ 5 |
Jan 2000 to Jan 2004 | 34 | 2834 | 60.29 | 7/ 13 |
Feb 2004 to Jan 2007 | 30 | 1418 | 33.76 | 3/ 9 |
Feb 2007 to Nov 2011 | 50 | 3748 | 55.11 | 7/ 28 |
Dec 2011 onwards | 4 | 155 | 19.37 | 0/ 1 |
Career | 134 | 8781 | 45.97 | 17/ 56 |
A couple of aspects about Laxman's career stand out more than others. One was his record against the best team of his generation. He unfortunately ended his battles against Australia on a low, averaging less than 20 in his final series, but in 29 Tests against them he scored almost 2500 runs. Over the period of his career, only Sachin Tendulkar scored more runs against Australia than Laxman.
Batsman | Tests | Runs | Average | 100s/ 50s |
Sachin Tendulkar | 29 | 3060 | 61.20 | 9/ 15 |
VVS Laxman | 29 | 2434 | 49.67 | 6/ 12 |
Rahul Dravid | 32 | 2126 | 38.65 | 2/ 13 |
Virender Sehwag | 21 | 1794 | 43.75 | 3/ 10 |
Brian Lara | 17 | 1786 | 55.81 | 7/ 4 |
Jacques Kallis | 22 | 1557 | 42.08 | 3/ 9 |
Laxman was one of the few batsmen who averaged more in the second innings (48.88) than in the first (44.25). In fact, his overall second-innings numbers stack up favourably against the best: among batsmen who've scored 3000-plus runs in second innings, only six have a higher average. Tendulkar (4546 runs at 44.13) and Dravid (4183 runs at 41.83) both have lower averages than Laxman. Among other top batting names, Ricky Ponting averages 42.81 in second innings, and Brian Lara 38.18. (Click here for the full list.)
Batsman | Innings | Runs | Average | 100s/ 50s |
Jacques Kallis | 107 | 4532 | 58.85 | 11/ 26 |
Alan Border | 111 | 4371 | 54.63 | 11/ 24 |
Kumar Sangakkara | 79 | 3700 | 53.62 | 12/ 15 |
Matthew Hayden | 81 | 3472 | 51.82 | 11/ 13 |
Sunil Gavaskar | 90 | 3963 | 51.46 | 11/ 22 |
Geoff Boycott | 85 | 3319 | 51.06 | 9/ 17 |
VVS Laxman | 91 | 3471 | 48.88 | 5/ 23 |
Desmond Haynes | 86 | 3030 | 48.87 | 9/ 12 |
As mentioned earlier, Laxman's inability to cash in on his opportunities against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe hurt his overall batting stats. Excluding his first 16 Tests and his last series, and considering stats against the top teams only, Laxman's average of 51.72 is marginally better than those of Dravid (51.24) and Tendulkar (50.04) over the same period (January 2000 to November 2011).
Batsman | Tests | Runs | Average | 100s/ 50s |
Jacques Kallis | 105 | 9339 | 58.36 | 32/ 42 |
Shivnarine Chanderpaul | 88 | 6943 | 54.24 | 21/ 36 |
Kumar Sangakkara | 87 | 7755 | 54.23 | 23/ 32 |
Ricky Ponting | 116 | 9846 | 53.51 | 31/ 43 |
Virender Sehwag | 85 | 7628 | 52.60 | 22/ 27 |
VVS Laxman | 105 | 7603 | 51.72 | 16/ 49 |
Rahul Dravid | 111 | 9019 | 51.24 | 25/ 40 |
One of the disappointing aspects which is often mentioned about Laxman's Test career is his lack of hundreds - he managed only 17 in 134 Tests, an average of one every almost eight Tests. However, one of the reasons for that is also his position in the batting line-up - 74 innings at No.5, and 67 at six. That often meant he was batting with the tail, and didn't always have the freedom to bat as he normally would with a top-order batsman. His overall stats at those positions, though, are outstanding: his aggregate of 5637 is the third-highest by any batsman in those two positions in Tests, and he averaged almost 50 at those slots too.
Batsman | Innings | Runs | Average | 100s/ 50s |
Steve Waugh | 221 | 9919 | 54.50 | 30/ 45 |
Shivnarine Chanderpaul | 168 | 7912 | 57.33 | 21/ 46 |
VVS Laxman | 141 | 5637 | 48.59 | 11/ 37 |
Allan Border | 133 | 5627 | 52.10 | 15/ 32 |
Michael Clarke | 106 | 5422 | 57.07 | 19/ 19 |
Mohammad Azharuddin | 126 | 5340 | 45.25 | 19/ 17 |
Sourav Ganguly | 146 | 5165 | 38.54 | 10/ 29 |
Clive Lloyd | 119 | 5163 | 47.36 | 14/ 27 |
Laxman was pretty good against all types of bowling, but he was best against spinners. Shane Warne was famously at the receiving end in the 2001 series, but he also handled Muttiah Muralitharan very competently. In 496 balls from him, Laxman scored 240 runs and was dismissed just twice. Daniel Vettori kept the runs in check against him (159 runs from 522 balls), but dismissed him just twice. The one spinner who dominated him was Sri Lanka's Ajantha Mendis, who dismissed him seven times conceding just 166 runs (average 23.71). The only other bowler who dismissed Laxman seven times in Tests was Brett Lee, but while Lee took 12 Tests for dismissals, Mendis achieved it in only six. (Click here for the list of bowlers who dismissed Laxman most often in Tests.)
Bowler type | Balls | Runs | Dismissals | Average | Run rate |
Pace/ Medium pace | 8815 | 4434 | 99 | 44.78 | 3.01 |
Spin | 6002# | 2842# | 49 | 58.00 | 2.84 |
Mixed* | 316 | 168 | 0 | - | 3.18 |
Laxman's stand-out innings at the ground was obviously his 281 against Australia in 2001, but even apart from that he had several memorable performances at the Eden Gardens. Way back in 1998, he almost scored his maiden century there (against Australia, who else), scoring 95. Overall, in 15 Test innings there, he scored five hundreds and three fifties, and averaged 110.63. In his last three Test innings in Kolkata, Laxman notched up three unbeaten hundreds: 112 against Pakistan, 143 against South Africa, and 176 against West Indies.
Batsman | Venue | Tests | Runs | Average | 100s/ 50s |
VVS Laxman | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 10 | 1217 | 110.63 | 5/ 3 |
Sunil Gavaskar | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 11 | 1122 | 56.10 | 5/ 3 |
Sunil Gavaskar | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | 12 | 1018 | 59.88 | 3/ 3 |
Rahul Dravid | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 9 | 962 | 68.71 | 4/ 3 |
Sachin Tendulkar | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | 9 | 876 | 87.60 | 5/ 1 |
Mohammad Azharuddin | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 7 | 860 | 107.50 | 5/ 2 |
Being an integral part of a middle-order that played together over such a long period meant Laxman played plenty of times with Dravid, Tendulkar and Ganguly, and forged some very meaningful partnerships with them. His stands with Dravid are, of course, legendary: they are one of seven pairs - and the only Indians - to put together two or more triple-century partnerships, and the only ones to do so against Australia. With Tendulkar, Laxman was involved in nine century partnerships, the highest being 353 in Sydney in 2004.
Partner | Innings | Runs | Ave stand | 100/ 50 stands |
Rahul Dravid | 86 | 4065 | 51.45 | 12/ 14 |
Sachin Tendulkar | 73 | 3523 | 51.05 | 9/ 19 |
Sourav Ganguly | 41 | 1681 | 43.10 | 5/ 7 |
MS Dhoni | 27 | 1361 | 56.70 | 3/ 8 |
Apart from all his batting exploits, there was also Laxman the catcher, who was a huge asset in the slips and close to the bat against the spinners. His 135 catches is the second-best for an Indian, next only to Dravid's 209. Almost 20% of his catches came off one bowler: c VVS Laxman b Anil Kumble was a dismissal mode that happened 26 times in Tests. In Mohali against England in 2001, he snared four catches in the first innings - only three Indian fielders have taken more catches in an innings.
Laxman's international career was mostly about Test cricket, but he also played 86 ODIs, and was unlucky to miss out on the 2003 World Cup. As in Tests, Australia were his favourite ODI opponents as well: four of his six hundreds came against them, and three in Australia. His best year in ODIs was by far 2004, when he scored four centuries in 24 innings, including three in the VB Series in Australia. In fact, Laxman is one of only four batsmen to score three centuries in an ODI series in Australia - Mark Waugh, Graeme Hick and David Gower are the others. Laxman may not fit into that group as an ODI batsman, but he does in another way: along with Gower and Waugh, he will walk into any shortlist of the most elegant and classy batsmen to play the game.
S Rajesh is stats editor of ESPNcricinfo. Follow him on Twitter