Test cricket gives teams and batters extra time to play as long as they want. That is the reason that history has seen some unbelievably high totals and scores achieved over the years. In this article, we will talk about the highest team totals in the history of Test cricket.
Teams have crossed between 600 and 700 at most in this format. However, when a player goes on to score 300 or more, the team’s score automatically goes up. However, despite that, the highest total in test cricket is almost 1000 runs in an inning. It belongs to Sri Lanka, which made it against India.
List of Highest Test Score
| Team | Score | Overs | Inn | Vs | Venue | Date |
| Sri Lanka | 952/6d | 271 | 2 | India | Colombo (RPS) | 2 Aug 1997 |
| England | 903/7d | 335.2 | 1 | Australia | The Oval | 20 Aug 1938 |
| England | 849 | 258.2 | 1 | West Indies | Kingston | 3 Apr 1930 |
| West Indies | 790/3d | 208.1 | 2 | Pakistan | Kingston | 26 Feb 1958 |
| Pakistan | 765/6d | 248.5 | 2 | Sri Lanka | Karachi | 21 Feb 2009 |
| Sri Lanka | 760/7d | 202.4 | 2 | India | Ahmedabad | 16 Nov 2009 |
| India | 759/7d | 190.4 | 2 | England | Chennai | 16 Dec 2016 |
| Australia | 758/8d | 245.4 | 2 | West Indies | Kingston | 11 Jun 1955 |
| Sri Lanka | 756/5d | 185.1 | 2 | South Africa | Colombo (SSC) | 27 Jul 2006 |
| West Indies | 751/5d | 202 | 1 | England | St John’s | 10 Apr 2004 |
3. England (849 all out) vs West Indies in April 1930
The third- and second-highest totals belong to the English cricket team. They registered the third-highest total in April 1930 against the West Indies. It was the last game of the four-match series at Kingston. Batting first, England went on to score the highest ever total at that time. They became the first team to cross the 800-run mark and made 849 runs in 258.2 overs. Andy Sandham scored a triple century and made 325 runs.
In reply, West Indies got dismissed for 286 runs, and England got a first-inning lead of 563 runs. England batted again and declared their second inning at 272/9, setting a massive target of 836 runs for the West Indies to win in two days. However, the West Indies batted cautiously in the second inning and made 408/5 in 164.3 overs, and the game ended in a draw.
2. England (903/7 d) vs Australia in August 1938
England broke their own record of 849 runs eight years later. In August 1938, they went on to cross the 900-run mark in an inning of test cricket to break all records. England made a huge total against Australia at the Oval. It was the last game of the five-match series. England batted for almost four days in the first inning. They declared their first inning at 903/7 in 335.2 overs.
Leonard Hutton scored a triple ton and made 364 runs (highest for England). Maurice Leyland (187) and Joe Hardstaff (169*) also scored big centuries in that inning. In response, Australia got all out for just 201 runs in the first inning. England got a lead of 702 runs, and they enforced the follow-on. Australia had even worse performances in the second inning and got dismissed for just 123 runs in 34.1 overs. As a result, England recorded the biggest inning win by an inning and 579 runs.
1. Sri Lanka (952/6 d) vs India in August 1997
It took another team 59 years to break England’s record of 903/7d. It was Sri Lanka that did the unthinkable in August 1997 against India in Colombo. This was the first game of the two tests, and India won the toss and decided to bat first. The decision went right to some extent. Team India batted for two days and declared at 537/8 in 167.3 overs. Navjot Sidhu (111), Sachin Tendulkar (143), and Mohammad Azharuddin (126) scored a century each.
In reply, Sri Lanka batted for the next three days and went on to score the highest test score in history. Sri Lanka became only the second team to score 900 or more runs in a test inning. They declared at 952/6 in 271 overs and wrote history. Though the match ended in a draw. Sanath Jayasuriya (340) scored a triple century, while Roshan Mahanama (225) made a double hundred.