Finally, a Test century
Batsmen who made several hundreds in one format, before making one in another

Virat Kohli marked the occasion of his maiden Test century - against Australia in Adelaide - with a leap, a roar and a swear. He had celebrated hundreds in that fashion quite often in one-day internationals, though. Before that 116, Kohli had been struggling to prove himself in India's Test middle order, but he had already fought and won that battle in ODIs. Kohli had eight one-day hundreds before a Test century. Prashant Kislaya asked us if anyone had scored more ODI centuries before their first in Tests, and vice versa.
Well, no. No one had more one-day hundreds than Kohli before a first Test century. Saeed Anwar, the former Pakistan opener, had six. Anwar had played 25 ODIs and made two hundreds before he was given a Test debut against West Indies in Faisalabad in 1990. He made a pair, and did not play another Test for more than three years. During that time he played 20 ODIs and scored four more centuries - three in a row in Sharjah - and won a berth on the Test tour of New Zealand in February 1994. Anwar failed in the first Test but made 169 and 69 in his next two innings, sealing his place at the top of the order.
Suresh Raina played 98 one-day internationals, scoring 2379 runs with three centuries and an average of 37 before he was given a Test debut. He beat Andrew Symonds' record (94) for the most ODIs before a first Test. On Test debut at the SSC in 2010, Raina steered India out of a tricky situation with an innings of 120. He has played 14 more Tests but that hundred has been his only Test hundred.
Player | ODIs | Mat | Inns | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | Test | Opp | Start Date | Scorecard | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
V Kohli (India) | 2008-2011 | 74 | 71 | 2860 | 118 | 46.88 | 8 | 116 | v Aus | Jan 24, 2012 | Test 2031 | ||
Saeed Anwar (Pak) | 1989-1993 | 45 | 44 | 1504 | 131 | 35.80 | 6 | 169 | v NZ | Feb 17, 1994 | Test 1249 | ||
AC Gilchrist (Aus) | 1996-1999 | 76 | 74 | 2376 | 154 | 33.94 | 5 | 149* | v Pak | Nov 18, 1999 | Test 1469 | ||
Shoaib Malik (Pak) | 1999-2006 | 115 | 100 | 3023 | 143 | 33.96 | 5 | 148* | v SL | Mar 26, 2006 | Test 1794 | ||
A Symonds (Aus) | 1998-2006 | 154 | 123 | 3863 | 156 | 38.63 | 5 | 156 | v Eng | Dec 26, 2006 | Test 1824 | ||
PV Simmons (WI) | 1987-1992 | 49 | 48 | 1417 | 122 | 30.80 | 4 | 110 | v Aus | Dec 26, 1992 | Test 1205 | ||
ADR Campbell (Zim) | 1992-2000 | 141 | 137 | 3778 | 131* | 30.71 | 4 | 102 | v India | Nov 25, 2000 | Test 1517 | ||
SR Watson (Aus) | 2002-2009 | 96 | 78 | 2276 | 136* | 40.64 | 4 | 120* | v Pak | Dec 26, 2009 | Test 1943 | ||
Shakib Al Hasan (Ban) | 2006-2010 | 82 | 78 | 2224 | 134* | 34.75 | 4 | 100 | v NZ | Feb 15, 2010 | Test 1953 | ||
NJ Astle (NZ) | 1995-1996 | 28 | 28 | 803 | 120 | 29.74 | 3 | 125 | v WI | Apr 19, 1996 | Test 1325 | ||
DS Lehmann (Aus) | 1996-2003 | 95 | 85 | 2509 | 119 | 38.01 | 3 | 160 | v WI | Apr 19, 2003 | Test 1639 | ||
KP Pietersen (Eng) | 2004-2005 | 21 | 15 | 786 | 116 | 87.33 | 3 | 158 | v Aus | Sep 8, 2005 | Test 1763 | ||
SK Raina (India) | 2005-2010 | 98 | 81 | 2379 | 116* | 37.17 | 3 | 120 | v SL | Jul 26, 2010 | Test 1966 | ||
BRM Taylor (Zim) | 2004-2011 | 118 | 117 | 3412 | 145* | 32.18 | 3 | 105* | v Ban | Aug 4, 2011 | Test 2002 |
Ajay Jadeja, a former India batsman, and Australia's Michael Bevan have made the most ODI hundreds - six - without scoring a Test century. Bevan played 232 ODIs but only 18 Tests, while Jadeja played 192 ODIs and 15 Tests. Raina has played only 15 Tests and is out of the Indian side at present; he could be India's 21st century Jadeja if he doesn't turnaround his Test form.
Sunil Gavaskar had scored all his Test centuries before he made a one-day hundred. All 34 of them. He scored his first one-day hundred only in his 107th and penultimate match - 103 not out against New Zealand in the 1987 World Cup. The semi-final defeat to England was his last international game.
Former England captain Nasser Hussain made his ODI debut in October 1989, four months before his Test debut, but did not score a one-day century until 2002. During that time Hussain scored ten Test centuries in 72 matches. The 115 in the NatWest Trophy final at Lord's against India remained his only ODI century and Hussain celebrated it with aggressive gestures at his critics in the press box, who had questioned his ability to bat at No. 3.
Player | Tests | Mat | Inns | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | ODI | Opp | Start Date | Scorecard | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SM Gavaskar (India) | 1971-1987 | 125 | 214 | 10122 | 236* | 51.12 | 34 | 103* | v NZ | Oct 31, 1987 | ODI 474 | ||
G Boycott (Eng) | 1964-1979 | 84 | 145 | 6316 | 246* | 49.34 | 18 | 105 | v Aus | Dec 11, 1979 | ODI 79 | ||
MA Taylor (Aus) | 1989-1996 | 73 | 131 | 5566 | 219 | 45.62 | 14 | 105 | v India | Oct 21, 1996 | ODI 1129 | ||
GS Chappell (Aus) | 1970-1977 | 46 | 81 | 3726 | 247* | 54.79 | 13 | 125* | v Eng | Jun 6, 1977 | ODI 44 | ||
M Amarnath (India) | 1969-1988 | 69 | 113 | 4378 | 138 | 42.50 | 11 | 100* | v WI | Jan 19, 1988 | ODI 497 | ||
TT Samaraweera (SL) | 2001-2009 | 54 | 85 | 3787 | 231 | 51.87 | 11 | 104 | v NZ | Sep 8, 2009 | ODI 2884 | ||
SR Waugh (Aus) | 1985-1995 | 80 | 123 | 4771 | 200 | 48.68 | 10 | 102* | v SL | Jan 16, 1996 | ODI 1039 | ||
N Hussain (Eng) | 1990-2002 | 72 | 128 | 4169 | 207 | 36.25 | 10 | 115 | v India | Jul 13, 2002 | ODI 1856 | ||
HA Gomes (WI) | 1976-1985 | 45 | 69 | 2683 | 143 | 45.47 | 9 | 101 | v SL | Feb 2, 1985 | ODI 300 | ||
IVA Richards (WI) | 1974-1976 | 21 | 36 | 2181 | 291 | 64.14 | 8 | 119* | v Eng | Aug 26, 1976 | ODI 37 | ||
Javed Miandad (Pak) | 1976-1982 | 46 | 77 | 3398 | 206 | 53.09 | 8 | 106* | v India | Dec 3, 1982 | ODI 162 | ||
DB Vengsarkar (India) | 1976-1984 | 72 | 118 | 4099 | 159 | 38.30 | 8 | 105 | v Eng | Dec 5, 1984 | ODI 279 | ||
KWR Fletcher (Eng) | 1968-1975 | 46 | 74 | 2800 | 216 | 43.75 | 7 | 131 | v NZ | Jun 11, 1975 | ODI 23 | ||
CH Lloyd (WI) | 1966-1975 | 43 | 76 | 3082 | 242* | 44.02 | 7 | 102 | v Aus | Jun 21, 1975 | ODI 33 | ||
JG Wright (NZ) | 1978-1988 | 58 | 103 | 3343 | 141 | 33.76 | 7 | 101 | v Eng | Mar 16, 1988 | ODI 508 | ||
SR Tendulkar (India) | 1989-1994 | 32 | 45 | 2023 | 165 | 50.57 | 7 | 110 | v Aus | Sep 9, 1994 | ODI 924 | ||
MA Atherton (Eng) | 1989-1995 | 45 | 84 | 3324 | 151 | 40.04 | 7 | 127 | v WI | May 28, 1995 | ODI 1002 | ||
GC Smith (SA) | 2002-2005 | 33 | 58 | 2774 | 277 | 51.37 | 7 | 105 | v Eng | Feb 4, 2005 | ODI 2221 |
Garry Sobers and Colin Cowdrey are among the top three batsmen with the most Test centuries and no ODI hundreds. Sobers has 26 Test tons and Cowdrey 22. Both played only one ODI each: Sobers made 0, Cowdrey made 1. Australia's Justin Langer, who scored 23 Test hundreds, also never made an ODI century. He played only eight one-dayers.
Among bowlers, former West Indian spinner Lance Gibbs never took a four-for in an ODI; he had 18 five-fors in Tests. Gibbs played only three one-dayers, though. The surprise is Mohammad Asif, the Pakistan fast bowler presently serving a jail term for spot-fixing. Asif has seven five-fors in only 23 Tests, but the best he has managed in 38 ODIs is 3 for 28.
Ian Botham had the most five-wicket hauls in Tests - 18 - before a four-wicket haul in an ODI. In his first 41 one-dayers, Botham took more than two wickets only three times and his best was 3 for 16, against Australia in Melbourne in January 1979. His first four-for was at Headlingley in 1982, against India. Botham went on to take only two more four-wicket hauls and only one five-for in 102 ODIs.
Player | Tests | Mat | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Ave | 5 | ODI | Opp | Start Date | Scorecard |
---|---|---|---|---|
IT Botham (Eng) | 1977-1982 | 48 | 5009 | 222 | 149* | 22.87 | 18 | 4/56 | v India | Jun 2, 1982 | ODI 152 |
DL Underwood (Eng) | 1966-1977 | 74 | 6600 | 265 | 45* | 28.20 | 16 | 4/44 | v WI | Nov 28, 1979 | ODI 76 |
Imran Khan (Pak) | 1971-1984 | 51 | 5316 | 232 | 123 | 24.16 | 16 | 6/14 | v India | Mar 22, 1985 | ODI 321 |
N Kapil Dev (India) | 1978-1983 | 53 | 6082 | 206 | 126* | 30.71 | 15 | 5/43 | v Aus | Jun 13, 1983 | ODI 207 |
GF Lawson (Aus) | 1980-1985 | 28 | 3210 | 118 | 57* | 29.44 | 9 | 4/26 | v Eng | May 30, 1985 | ODI 329 |
JA Snow (Eng) | 1965-1973 | 41 | 4476 | 173 | 73 | 27.80 | 8 | 4/32 | v NZ | Jul 18, 1973 | ODI 6 |
AME Roberts (WI) | 1974-1976 | 20 | 2324 | 103 | 19 | 23.24 | 8 | 4/32 | v Eng | Aug 26, 1976 | ODI 37 |
RGD Willis (Eng) | 1971-1978 | 35 | 3191 | 126 | 24* | 32.56 | 8 | 4/15 | v Pak | May 24, 1978 | ODI 50 |
RJ Hadlee (NZ) | 1973-1980 | 30 | 3697 | 129 | 103 | 30.05 | 8 | 5/32 | v India | Dec 9, 1980 | ODI 99 |
DW Steyn (SA) | 2004-2008 | 25 | 2882 | 128 | 33* | 24.01 | 8 | 4/16 | v Ban | Nov 7, 2008 | ODI 2771 |
ARC Fraser (Eng) | 1989-1995 | 22 | 2469 | 92 | 29 | 28.05 | 7 | 4/22 | v Aus | Jan 10, 1995 | ODI 969 |
AR Caddick (Eng) | 1993-2000 | 30 | 3274 | 110 | 48 | 31.18 | 7 | 4/19 | v SA | Feb 13, 2000 | ODI 1560 |
AW Greig (Eng) | 1972-1975 | 38 | 3285 | 109 | 148 | 30.99 | 6 | 4/45 | v NZ | Jun 11, 1975 | ODI 23 |
MHN Walker (Aus) | 1972-1975 | 22 | 2377 | 93 | 41* | 27.96 | 6 | 4/19 | v WI | Dec 20, 1975 | ODI 34 |
JE Emburey (Eng) | 1978-1987 | 42 | 3633 | 115 | 75 | 35.97 | 6 | 4/37 | v WI | Jan 24, 1987 | ODI 423 |
Harbhajan Singh (India) | 1998-2001 | 20 | 2367 | 81 | 66 | 32.87 | 6 | 5/43 | v Eng | Feb 3, 2002 | ODI 1803 |
Shakib Al Hasan (Ban) | 2007-2010 | 16 | 1649 | 57 | 96* | 29.98 | 6 | 4/33 | v NZ | Feb 11, 2010 | ODI 2953 |
JR Thomson (Aus) | 1972-1978 | 27 | 3123 | 125 | 49 | 26.46 | 5 | 4/67 | v WI | Feb 22, 1978 | ODI 48 |
RM Hogg (Aus) | 1978-1979 | 15 | 1441 | 64 | 36 | 23.24 | 5 | 4/46 | v Eng | Dec 26, 1979 | ODI 82 |
SB Doull (NZ) | 1992-1997 | 21 | 2047 | 72 | 31* | 31.49 | 5 | 4/25 | v Aus | Feb 14, 1998 | ODI 1293 |
RW Price (Zim) | 1999-2004 | 18 | 2475 | 69 | 36 | 39.91 | 5 | 4/22 | v Ban | Jan 19, 2009 | ODI 2797 |
Former India fast bowler Ajit Agarkar took eight hauls of four wickets or more in ODIs before taking a five-for in a Test. Agarkar's maiden five-wicket haul came where Kohli scored his maiden Test century, Adelaide Oval. He was playing his 18th Test and India completed a famous victory to go up 1-0 on their tour of Australia in 2003-04. Agarkar played only eight more Tests, though, and did not take another five-for. It is likely that Kohli's career will be much longer.
Player | ODIs | Mat | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Ave | 4+ | Test | Opp | Start Date | Scorecard | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ST Jayasuriya (SL) | 1989-2001 | 252 | 7482 | 214 | 6/29 | 34.96 | 8 | 5/43 | v Zim | Jan 12, 2002 | Test 1585 | ||
AB Agarkar (India) | 1998-2003 | 121 | 5083 | 182 | 4/25 | 27.92 | 8 | 6/41 | v Aus | Dec 12, 2003 | Test 1673 | ||
Abdul Razzaq (Pak) | 1996-2004 | 174 | 5645 | 194 | 6/35 | 29.09 | 7 | 5/35 | v SL | Oct 28, 2004 | Test 1719 | ||
Saqlain Mushtaq (Pak) | 1995-1997 | 51 | 1863 | 95 | 5/29 | 19.61 | 6 | 5/89 | v SL | Apr 19, 1997 | Test 1366 | ||
VC Drakes (WI) | 1995-2003 | 23 | 875 | 42 | 5/33 | 20.83 | 5 | 5/93 | v Aus | Apr 10, 2003 | Test 1638 | ||
IR Bishop (WI) | 1988-1989 | 17 | 592 | 33 | 5/27 | 17.93 | 4 | 6/87 | v India | Apr 7, 1989 | Test 1118 | ||
Waqar Younis (Pak) | 1989-1990 | 23 | 688 | 37 | 6/26 | 18.59 | 4 | 7/86 | v NZ | Oct 18, 1990 | Test 1152 | ||
GD McGrath (Aus) | 1993-1995 | 36 | 1221 | 49 | 5/52 | 24.91 | 4 | 5/68 | v WI | Mar 31, 1995 | Test 1294 | ||
J Srinath (India) | 1991-1996 | 114 | 4250 | 149 | 5/24 | 28.52 | 4 | 6/21 | v SA | Nov 20, 1996 | Test 1338 | ||
DW Fleming (Aus) | 1994-1998 | 40 | 1532 | 63 | 5/36 | 24.31 | 4 | 5/46 | v Eng | Nov 28, 1998 | Test 1431 | ||
Z Khan (India) | 2000-2002 | 49 | 2022 | 76 | 4/42 | 26.60 | 4 | 5/53 | v NZ | Dec 12, 2002 | Test 1631 | ||
CH Gayle (WI) | 1999-2004 | 102 | 2604 | 88 | 5/46 | 29.59 | 4 | 5/34 | v Eng | Jul 29, 2004 | Test 1708 | ||
MG Johnson (Aus) | 2005-2008 | 42 | 1525 | 65 | 5/26 | 23.46 | 4 | 5/39 | v NZ | Nov 20, 2008 | Test 1894 | ||
RMH Binny (India) | 1980-1986 | 63 | 1910 | 70 | 4/29 | 27.28 | 3 | 5/40 | v Eng | Jun 19, 1986 | Test 1047 | ||
CEL Ambrose (WI) | 1988-1988 | 9 | 300 | 20 | 4/29 | 15.00 | 3 | 5/72 | v Aus | Dec 2, 1988 | Test 1110 | ||
Aaqib Javed (Pak) | 1988-1995 | 110 | 3760 | 123 | 7/37 | 30.56 | 3 | 5/84 | v SL | Sep 15, 1995 | Test 1305 | ||
SE Bond (NZ) | 2002-2002 | 13 | 487 | 23 | 5/25 | 21.17 | 3 | 5/78 | v WI | Jun 21, 2002 | Test 1607 | ||
A Flintoff (Eng) | 1999-2003 | 66 | 1625 | 66 | 4/14 | 24.62 | 3 | 5/58 | v WI | Apr 1, 2004 | Test 1694 | ||
DT Hondo (Zim) | 2001-2004 | 52 | 2021 | 55 | 4/37 | 36.74 | 3 | 6/59 | v Ban | Jan 14, 2005 | Test 1735 | ||
BAW Mendis (SL) | 2008-2008 | 8 | 205 | 20 | 6/13 | 10.25 | 3 | /117 | v India | Jul 31, 2008 | Test 1884 | ||
SCJ Broad (Eng) | 2006-2008 | 42 | 1710 | 62 | 5/23 | 27.58 | 3 | 5/85 | v WI | Feb 4, 2009 | Test 1906 | ||
SR Watson (Aus) | 2002-2010 | 114 | 3296 | 118 | 4/36 | 27.93 | 3 | 5/40 | v Pak | Jul 13, 2010 | Test 1963 | ||
RJ Harris (Aus) | 2009-2010 | 17 | 661 | 41 | 5/19 | 16.12 | 3 | 6/47 | v Eng | Dec 16, 2010 | Test 1984 | ||
P Kumar (India) | 2007-2011 | 52 | 2088 | 62 | 4/31 | 33.67 | 3 | /106 | v Eng | Jul 21, 2011 | Test 2000 |
Travis Basevi is a cricket statistician and UK Senior Programmer for ESPNcricinfo and other ESPN sports websites. George Binoy is an Assistant Editor at ESPNcricinfo
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