England is known as the inventor of the game of cricket. They were the first team to play the game of cricket. England played the first ever cricket match in 1877 against Australia. Since then, the journey of this game has begun, and it has taken giant steps. England has been one of the strongest teams in this game since the start.
England holds the record for the biggest test victory, 675 runs against Australia in 1928. Apart from this, there are some other great stats in the English cricket team. Here we will talk about the list of the biggest partnerships for England in the history of Test cricket.
Highest Partnership in Test by England
| Pair | Runs | Wkt | Against | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter May and Colin Cowdrey | 411 | 4th | West Indies | Birmingham | 30 May 1957 |
| Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow | 399 | 6th | South Africa | Cape Town | 2 Jan 2016 |
| Leonard Hutton and Maurice Leyland | 382 | 2nd | Australia | The Oval | 20 Aug 1938 |
| Bill Edrich and Denis Compton | 370 | 3rd | South Africa | Lord’s | 21 Jun 1947 |
| John Edrich and Ken Barrington | 369 | 2nd | New Zealand | Leeds | 8 Jul 1965 |
| Leonard Hutton and Cyril Washbrook | 359 | 1st | South Africa | Johannesburg | 27 Dec 1948 |
| Zak Crawley and Jos Buttler | 359 | 5th | Pakistan | Southampton | 21 Aug 2020 |
| Graham Gooch and David Gower | 351 | 2nd | Australia | The Oval | 29 Aug 1985 |
| Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen | 350 | 3rd | India | The Oval | 18 Aug 2011 |
| Jonathan Trott and Stuart Broad | 332 | 8th | Pakistan | Lord’s | 26 Aug 2010 |
3. Leonard Hutton and Maurice Leyland (382 runs) vs Australia in 1938
England registered their third-highest test partnership when they beat Australia with the biggest inning margin. This game was played in August 1938 at the Oval. Batting first, England scored the highest test score (now second highest after Sri Lanka broke it in 1997) of 903/7 and declared their first inning. They had a 382-run partnership for the second wicket between Leonard Hutton and Maurice Leyland. Hutton made his career-best score of 364 runs with 35 fours.
Leyland also chipped in with 187 runs. Against this massive score of 903 runs, Australia failed badly. They made 201 runs in their first inning and were forced to bat again as per the follow-on. However, they batted even worse in the second inning and were dismissed for 123 runs, suffering the largest inning defeat. England won that game by an inning and 579 runs.
2. Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow (399 runs) vs South Africa in 2016
England’s most recent and second highest partnership is registered between the pair of Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow. It was made when England faced South Africa in Cape Town in January 2016. Batting first, England declared 629/6 in 125.5 overs. Stokes and Bairstow added 399 runs for the 6th wicket. Bairstow scored 150 not out off 191 balls, with 18 fours and two sixes. Stokes smashed the second fastest test double century off just 163 balls.
He made 258 runs off 198 balls, with 30 fours and 11 sixes. In reply, South Africa also batted well and declared at 627/7, with Hashim Amla (201) and Temba Bavuma (102*) scoring centuries. England batted again and were at 159/6 when the match ended in a draw. Thus, England had their second-biggest test partnership in this game.
1. Peter May and Colin Cowdrey (411 runs) vs West Indies in 1957
The highest partnership for England in test format came in June 1957, when they faced West Indies in Birmingham. It was the first test of the five-match series. England got bowled out for just 186 runs in their first inning. In response, the West Indies scored 474 runs and took a lead of 292 runs. England batted again and this time posted a huge total. They declared their inning to be 583/4 in 258 overs.
Peter May and Colin Cowdrey added 411 runs for the 4th wicket to take England to a big total. Cowdrey made 154 runs and skipper May remained unbeaten on 285 runs with 25 fours and two sixes. It was England’s highest partnership which is still a record. They set West Indies a target of 296 runs. West Indies were struggling at 72/7 when the match ended in a draw.