Best Opening Pairs in Cricket History

Cricket has been blessed with brilliant batters, but successful opening partnerships should never be taken for granted. Test cricket, in particular, is the ultimate yardstick for diehard fans.

Scoring runs at the top of the order is never easy, but we have trawled through the archives and shared our favourite opening pairs.

In this guide, SportsBoom has selected five of the greatest opening pairs in Tests, so let’s see what made these partnerships so special.

Best Opening Pairs in Test Cricket

The opening pairs we have revealed brought their own styles. They had an innate ability to grab Test matches by the scruff of the neck and churn out runs or occupy the crease for long periods when survival was the order of the day.

We have produced a table listing the top five opening pairs in Test history, and this is in order of the combined runs scored. We’ve also highlighted the number of innings and not outs they had which are critical elements of our methodology.

Running through the Best Opening Pairs

Now, we’ve shared the top 5 Test opening pairs, it’s time to provide a series of mini profiles, explaining what made them stand out.

Gordon Greenidge & Desmond Haynes (1978-1991)

Apart from enjoying the longest spell together at the top of the order on this list (13 years), Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes just seemed to click.

Remember, this was when the West Indies were at the peak of their powers, and they tended to bully teams. They were both right-handed, and the turning point was the 87 they put on against Australia in 1978 at Port-of-Spain. Greenidge and Haynes shared 16 stands of 100 or more runs which is impressive.

Haynes was probably more sensible while Greenidge boasted more flair. With just under 6,500 runs combined, the West Indies will be forever indebted for their contributions.

Justin Langer & Matthew Hayden (2001-2007)

This was a little and large style of partnership. Matthew Hayden towered over the diminutive Justin Langer, but the pair shone at the crease.

Although they initially came in and out of the side, once they settled down, they quickly made up for lost time.

Hayden was usually quite dismissive of the bowling he faced, often charging down the track, and he averaged over 50 in Test cricket.

This brilliant left/left combo, who amassed over 5,600 runs, helped Australia win the Ashes three times during their incredible spell together.

Andrew Strauss & Alastair Cook (2006-2012)

Perhaps one of the most notorious opening pairs in Test cricket, Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook always seemed to exude calm, and they had a canny knack for scoring runs quickly.

Cook was prolific, managing 12,472 Test runs in his career, placing him sixth on the list, while Strauss was no slouch either, churning out 7,037 runs in his career.

Perhaps their most memorable innings was in the Ashes in Brisbane in 2010 when Cook put in a colossal shift, batting for over 10 hours, helping to put on 188 for the opening partnership alongside Strauss. Cook went on to top score in the series as England ended their long wait to lift the urn Down Under.

Marvan Atappatu & Sanath Jayasuriya (1997-2007)

Cricketing icons, Marvan Atappatu and Sanath Jayasuriya helped put Sri Lanka on the map in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Often, they were both destructive, and Jayasuriya, who captained his country, usually led by example.

Jayasuriya and Atapattu averaged over 40 together in Test cricket. However, the fact their compatriots held them in high regard, such as Kusal Perrera, pays testament to the impact the duo had on the national side.