A test innings is something full of determination, presence of mind, and patience and it is one of the biggest stages to make a batsman succeed on the big stage. It not only defines the player’s true potential but also forces him to stretch him to his fullest to save the day for his team. When we speak about saving the day how can we forget the contribution of 10th wicket partnerships which are least expected but can and have changed the course of the game over the years? So today in this article we will speak about the top five 10th wicket partnerships of all time.
The first 10th wicket partnership and one of the greatest of all time are between Joe Root and Jimmy Anderson. During the first Investec Test in 2014 at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham India batting first had set up a huge first-innings total of 457 putting England in some real misery. England openers put up a great show but the middle order got exposed and they suffered a slump with Joe root well set at one end and on came Anderson for the 10th wicket at a team total of 298-9.
Joe Root and Jimmy Anderson put on a world-record stand of 198 for the last wicket to take England to a highly unlikely first-innings lead against India at Trent Bridge. Anderson’s previous highest score was 49 for Burnley before he scored the memorable 81 against India and missed his century by a whisker while Joe Root remained unbeaten on 154. Although the test ended in a draw this partnership went down in history as one of the highest 10th wicket partnerships in the history of cricket.
Next up is another partnership between the Australian pair of late Philip Hughes and Ashton Agar. In 2013 Australia returned to Trent Bridge where a 19-year-old Ashton Agar entered Ashes folklore with a stunning Test debut that ignited the series and an entire country. Trent Bridge has a rapport for staging some of the best 10th wicket partnership of all time. This test was a debut for the number 10 batsman Ashton Agar and he made it count. The two batsmen batted nearly for 31.1 overs putting up 163 runs at a healthy run rate of 5.22 runs per over. Agar was the last man out, missing out on a century by just two runs and Hughes contributed 60 runs to the partnership. Agar’s innings also broke the record for the highest innings by a No 11 batsmen, bettering Tino Best’s 95. Agar’s innings of 98 consisted of 12 fours and two massive sixes as the debutant remained two runs shy of his century.
The third best 10th wicket partnership is that between a Kiwi pair of BF Hastings and RO Collinge in a test in the late ’70s in Auckland against a formidable Pakistan side. Pakistan scored 402, but when Collinge joined Hastings at the crease New Zealand was struggling at 251 for nine. Opener Rodney Redmond had already sealed his place in New Zealand cricket immortality by scoring a hundred, in what turned out to be his only test, but New Zealand was still a long way behind after legspinner Intikhab Alam took six quick wickets. Collinge and Hastings ensured they bat throughout the day to avoid the follow on and went on to put up a partnership of 151 runs which was a world record at that time until 35 years later Zaheer Khan broke the record.
The fourth partnership in the list is that between the Pakistani pair of Azhar Mahmood and Mushtaq Ahmed. This occurred during a test against South Africa in 1997 which ended in a draw but the 10th wicket partnership of 151 runs remains etched in the record books as one of the best of all times. The 10th wicket partnership of 151 between Azhar Mahmood and Mushtaq Ahmed equaled the Test record for this wicket (Hastings and Collinge for New Zealand v Pakistan, Auckland, 1972-73), and beat the previous Pakistan record of 133 (Wasim Raja and Wasim Bari, v West Indies, Bridgetown, 1976-77). Owing to this amazing piece of batting by the two individuals Pakistan went on to score a mammoth 456 at the end of their first innings and it became the only test match where two players made a century on debut. This Rawalpindi test is one of the most gloriest test matches in Pakistan’s cricketing history.
The fifth and the last 10th wicket partnership we gonna speak about is between the West Indian pair of Tino Best and Denesh Ramdin. During the third test of their series against England in Nottingham Windies batting first were in huge trouble when they lost their ninth wicket at a mere score of 298 and in came the number 10 batsman Tino Best with Denesh Ramdin at the other end. Tino Best registered the highest score by a No 11 in Tests, smashing 95 to take West Indies to its first total of over 400 in the series against England. Best began confidently, driving like a top-order batsman and hitting over the top, and also handing over the strike to his partner Ramdin, who was amid an inspired knock by then, consistently.
Both of them were at the top of their game until Best was dismissed 5 runs shy of a well deserved century. England went into bat in their first innings but the rain-hit match ensured there wasn’t much of play going forward and the match ended in a draw. This match is remembered for a long time firstly die to this historic 10th wicket partnership of 141 runs and secondly because of Ramdin’s message for Viv Richards post his century which flaked quite a series of controversies in times to come.
