Most Double Centuries in Test Cricket: Top 20 Scorers of All Time

Don Bradman holds the record for the most double centuries in Test cricket, with 12 innings of 200 or more — a tally that no other batter in history has approached. A double century in Test cricket is one of the rarest and most celebrated achievements in the sport. Batters who reach 200 are in exclusive company: only a few dozen players have ever done it even once.

What Makes a Double Century So Rare

Reaching 200 in a Test innings requires the combination of skill, concentration, physical endurance, and opportunity. A batter must:

• Bat for many hours (typically five or more) without being dismissed
• Maintain concentration through fatigue and opposition pressure
• Avoid all forms of dismissal — and in Test cricket, the margins are fine
• Have the team situation allow them to continue batting after 100

A century is considered the benchmark of a great innings. A double century is something else entirely — a once-in-a-career achievement for most, but a recurring one for the very greatest batters.

Batters With the Most Double Centuries in Test History

Batter	Country	Double Centuries
Don Bradman	Australia	12
Kumar Sangakkara	Sri Lanka	11
Brian Lara	West Indies	9
Mahela Jayawardene	Sri Lanka	7
Wally Hammond	England	7
Virender Sehwag	India	6
Ross Taylor	New Zealand	5
Martin Crowe	New Zealand	4
Len Hutton	England	4
Graeme Smith	South Africa	4
Matthew Hayden	Australia	4
Gary Sobers	West Indies	4
Ricky Ponting	Australia	4
Virat Kohli	India	3
Hashim Amla	South Africa	3

Note: Figures reflect career totals at retirement for retired players. Active players’ tallies may have changed.

Bradman: The Unreachable Standard

Bradman’s 12 double centuries stand apart from every other name on this list. He achieved this in a Test career of just 52 matches — a pace of double centuries per innings that no batter, active or retired, has come close to replicating. His Test batting average of 99.94 remains the most celebrated statistic in cricket, and his double century count is just one expression of that sustained, otherworldly dominance.

His highest score of 334 (against England at Headingley in 1930) was a world record at the time. He scored over 300 on two separate occasions in Test cricket.

Kumar Sangakkara’s Remarkable Tally

Sangakkara, with 11 double centuries, is the only batter to come meaningfully close to Bradman’s tally in this category. He scored four consecutive centuries in a single Test series (against South Africa in 2006), demonstrating a consistency that placed him among the game’s all-time greats. His 319 against Bangladesh is one of the highest scores in Test history.

Brian Lara’s Record-Breaking Innings

Lara’s 9 double centuries include two of the most famous individual innings ever played. His 375 against England in 1994 broke Sobers’ long-standing world record for the highest Test score, and his 400 not out in 2004 reclaimed the record from Matthew Hayden (380 against Zimbabwe). Both innings are studied not just for their size but for the sustained quality of batsmanship they represented.

What All These Batters Share

Reviewing the names on the double century list reveals consistent themes:

• Technique — they can play both aggressive and defensive cricket to order
• Temperament — they maintain focus through very long innings without losing concentration
• Physical fitness — batting for six or more hours requires endurance as well as skill
• Hunger for big scores — the best batters accelerate after reaching 100, rather than relaxing

Quick summary: Don Bradman’s 12 Test double centuries are an unreachable benchmark. Kumar Sangakkara (11) and Brian Lara (9) are the only batters in the same conversation. A double century in Test cricket remains one of the rarest and most admired achievements in any sport — a mark of the very highest class of batsmanship.