There have been a few who have made their nation proud with record appearances in all three formats for the Indian cricket side. In this article, we will be discussing about most matches by an Indian in international cricket.
The Indian team has given the country and the world many great batsmen, whose batting is admired by the whole world. Whether these players are playing at home or abroad, they have shown their batting prowess everywhere.
There have been a few who have made their nation proud with record appearances in all three formats for the Indian cricket side. While some have been able to represent India in a record number of matches, others have done a significant job in all three formats, time and time again.
In this article, we will be discussing about most matches by an Indian in international cricket.
Also Read: Can You Guess the Indian with Most ICC Appearances?
Most matches by an Indian in international cricket
1. Sachin Tendulkar | 664
Sachin Tendulkar is the player who has played the most matches for the Indian team in international cricket. From 1989 to 2013, the Master Blaster has played a total of 664 matches in international cricket, in which he has scored 34537 runs at an impressive average of 48.52. He is the only batsman to score 100 centuries in international cricket.
Tendulkar featured in 200 Test matches, where he scored 15,921 runs at an average of 53.78, while he had 51 centuries in the format. On the other hand, he made his ODI appearances in 463 games to score 18,426 runs at an average of 44.83, where he struck runs at a strike rate of 86.23. Also, he was also the first player in the format to score a double-century. Meanwhile, he also made a lone T20I appearance against South Africa in 2006.
2. Virat Kohli | 550
Virat Kohli is second in terms of playing the most number of international matches for India. Kohli, who began his international career in 2008, scored a total of 27599 runs at an average of 52.36 in 550 matches, in which 82 centuries have come from his bat. Kohli's highest score in international cricket has been 254* runs.
Kohli has represented India in 123 Test matches, while he has made 302 and 125 appearances in ODI and T20Is. Kohli has dominated in all three formats, where ODI has been his forte with 14,180 runs at an average of 57.88, with his 51 centuries. On the other hand, he has 9,230 runs in Test cricket, while having 4,188 runs in the duration of his T20I career.
3. MS Dhoni | 535
Mahendra Singh Dhoni, has retired after the 2019 World Cup from international cricket. Debuting in the year 2004, MS Dhoni went on to play 535 matches for India where he amassed a total of 17,092 runs while averaging 44.74 across formats. During this, 15 centuries have come from his bat. Under Dhoni's captaincy, the Indian team won the T20 World Cup, Champions Trophy and ODI World Cup titles.
The Indian wicketkeeper batter was the most reliable player in ODI cricket with 10,773 runs in 350 matches. While he made 90 Test appearances to score 4,876 runs, whereas he played 98 matches in the shortest format with 1,617 runs during his career.
4. Rahul Dravid | 504
Rahul Dravid has played cricket for the Indian team from 1996 to 2012. During this time, he featured in a total of 504 matches for the Men in Blue, while scoring a total of 24,064 runs at an average of 45.57. He scored 48 centuries in international cricket.
Dravid, also called as The Wall, was one of the most celebrated players of his time with 164 Test appearances powered by 344 ODI games, while he played a lone T20I match. In Test cricket, Dravid was a beast with 13,288 runs, whereas in one-day cricket, he was at his best with 10,889 runs. Dravid has also been the coach of Team India and under his coaching the Indian team won the T20 World Cup 2024 title.
Also Read: Most Test Centuries in Cricket History
5. Rohit Sharma | 499*
Rohit Sharma played his first international cricket match for the Indian team in 2007. He is just one game away from the record figure of 500 after featuring in 499 matches so far in his overall international career.
Now, Rohit has retired from T20I and Test cricket. He is currently playing in ODIs. In his combined career, Sharma has amassed 19,700 runs at an average of 42.18, while he has scored a total of 49 centuries in all forms of the game for India.
Additionally, Rohit led India to back-to-back two ICC trophies, the 2024 T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy 2025. He has five centuries in the T20I format for India. Moreover, with 11,168 runs in 273 ODIs, he is also one of the top-notch run-scorers.
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