Indians in County Championship: Centuries by Indian Cricketers
Tons by Indian Cricketers in County cricket
There have been 33 players who represented India in International Cricket have played in the County Championship in England. A total of 51 centuries have been scored by them. Bharath Seervi lists those centuries and some related stats.
Of the 33 Indian international players who played County cricket, 16 of them scored centuries in the County for various teams. The total number of centuries by them till the last season is 51.
Mohammad Azharuddin has scored eight centuries, which is the highest among Indian batsmen. Nawab of Pataudi Sr, Ravi Shastri, and VVS Laxman have scored six centuries each. The highest score is 231 by Nawab of Pataudi Sr for Worcestershire vs Essex at Worcester in 1933.
Double centuries:
Among the 51 centuries, six are double centuries — four by Nawab of Pataudi Sr and two by Azharuddin.
| Runs | Batsman | Position | Inn | For | Against | Venue | Match Date | Result |
| 231* | Nawab of Pataudi Sr | 3 | 3 | Worcestershire | Essex | Worcester | August 5, 1933 | Drawn |
| 224* | Nawab of Pataudi Sr | 3 | 1 | Worcestershire | Kent | Worcester | July 12, 1933 | Drawn |
| 222 | Nawab of Pataudi Sr | 3 | 1 | Worcestershire | Somerset | Weston-super-Mare | August 12, 1933 | Drawn |
| 214* | Nawab of Pataudi Sr | 3 | 2 | Worcestershire | Glamorgan | Worcester | May 23, 1934 | Drawn |
| 212 | Mohammad Azharuddin | 4 | 3 | Derbyshire | Leicestershire | Leicester | August 28, 1991 | Won |
| 205 | Mohammad Azharuddin | 5 | 3 | Derbyshire | Durham | Chesterfield | April 28, 1994 | Won |
All the four double centuries by Nawab of Pataudi Sr resulted in draw for his team, Worcestershire, while Azharuddin’s double hundreds for Derby were in wins.
Centuries:
The table below lists the remaining 45 centuries (excluding the double centuries above). It involves seven scores in excess of 150 — three by Dinesh Mongia, two by Azharuddin and one each by Sunil Gavaskar and Shastri.
| Runs | Balls | Name | Position | Inn | For | Against | Venue | Date | Result |
| 165 | – | Dinesh Mongia | 4 | 1 | Leicestershire | Essex | Chelmsford | May 3, 2006 | Won |
| 164 | 191 | Dinesh Mongia | 4 | 2 | Leicestershire | Durham | Chester-le-Street | August 12, 2005 | Drawn |
| 161 | 298 | Dinesh Mongia | 4 | 1 | Leicestershire | Glamorgan | Leicester | May 9, 2006 | Drawn |
| 160* | – | Mohammad Azharuddin | 5 | 2 | Derbyshire | Lancashire | Derby | August 16, 1991 | Won |
| 157 | – | Ravi Shastri | 5 | 1 | Glamorgan | Somerset | Cardiff | April 28, 1988 | Drawn |
| 155* | – | Sunil Gavaskar | 2 | 1 | Somerset | Yorkshire | Weston-super-Mare | August 6, 1980 | Drawn |
| 154 | – | Mohammad Azharuddin | 4 | 1 | Derbyshire | Gloucestershire | Gloucester | June 18, 1991 | Won |
| 142 | 125 | Sourav Ganguly | 5 | 3 | Glamorgan | Kent | Cardiff | June 8, 2005 | Lost |
| 141 | – | Farokh Engineer | 6 | 2 | Lancashire | Derbyshire | Buxton | July 17, 1971 | Drawn |
| 138 | – | Sunil Gavaskar | 2 | 3 | Somerset | Surrey | Kennington | May 28, 1980 | Lost |
| 137 | 151 | Virender Sehwag | 2 | 2 | Leicestershire | Nottinghamshire | Leicester | June 27, 2003 | Drawn |
| 137 | 295 | Rahul Dravid | 4 | 2 | Kent | Hampshire | Portsmouth | July 19, 2000 | Won |
| 135 | 177 | VVS Laxman | 4 | 2 | Lancashire | Hampshire | Southampton | August 6, 2009 | Drawn |
| 133* | – | Ravi Shastri | 3 | 1 | Glamorgan | Lancashire | Liverpool | June 28, 1991 | Drawn |
| 130 + | 111 | Virender Sehwag | 2 | 2 | Leicestershire | Middlesex | Southgate | July 9, 2003 | Lost |
| 129* | – | Mohammad Azharuddin | 4 | 2 | Derbyshire | Nottinghamshire | Nottingham | August 22, 1991 | Won |
| 128* | – | Farokh Engineer | 5 | 1 | Lancashire | Surrey | Kennington | August 11, 1973 | Lost |
| 127 | – | Ravi Shastri | 5 | 1 | Glamorgan | Middlesex | Albergavenny | June 10, 1989 | Drawn |
| 123* | – | Nawab of Pataudi Sr | 3 | 3 | Worcestershire | Glamorgan | Lianelli | June 24, 1933 | Lost |
| 121* | – | Nawab of Pataudi Sr | 4 | 2 | Worcestershire | Hampshire | Worcester | August 3, 1938 | Drawn |
| 120 | – | Kapil Dev | 6 | 1 | Northamptonshire | Somerset | Weston-super-Mare | August 6, 1983 | Drawn |
| 113* | 312 | VVS Laxman | 4 | 3 | Lancashire | Somerset | Taunton | September 9, 2009 | Drawn |
| 113 + | 254 | VVS Laxman | 4 | 2 | Lancashire | Warwickshire | Manchester | September 23, 2009 | Won |
| 112 | 170 | Piyush Chawla | 9 | 2 | Somerset | Middlesex | Lord’s | August 28, 2013 | Won |
| 112 | – | Abdul Kardar | 8 | 1 | Warwickshire | Middlesex | Lord’s | May 10, 1950 | Won |
| 111 | 188 | Dinesh Mongia | 4 | 1 | Lancashire | Gloucestershire | Cheltenham | July 21, 2004 | Drawn |
| 110 | – | Mohammad Azharuddin | 4 | 2 | Derbyshire | Middlesex | Lord’s | August 9, 1991 | Lost |
| 109 | 207 | VVS Laxman | 4 | 2 | Lancashire | Yorkshire | Manchester | July 31, 2009 | Drawn |
| 109 | – | Mohammad Azharuddin | 4 | 2 | Derbyshire | Glamorgan | Cardiff | June 16, 1994 | Won |
| 108* | 147 | Dinesh Mongia | 4 | 3 | Lancashire | Warwickshire | Manchester | July 28, 2004 | Drawn |
| 107 | – | Ravi Shastri | 3 | 1 | Glamorgan | Leicestershire | Neath | June 21, 1991 | Drawn |
| 106 | – | Gautam Gambhir | 2 | 3 | Essex | Gloucestershire | Bristol | August 28, 2013 | Drawn |
| 104* | – | Farokh Engineer | 6 | 1 | Lancashire | Warwickshire | Manchester | August 2, 1975 | Won |
| 103 | 165 | VVS Laxman | 5 | 2 | Lancashire | Warwickshire | Manchester | September 11, 2007 | Won |
| 103 | – | Ravi Shastri | 5 | 1 | Glamorgan | Northamptonshire | Swansea | July 1, 1987 | Lost |
| 103 | – | Kapil Dev | 6 | 1 | Northamptonshire | Sussex | Eastbourne | August 11, 1982 | Won |
| 103 | – | Farokh Engineer | 4 | 3 | Lancashire | Glamorgan | Swansea | June 11, 1969 | Drawn |
| 102* # | 86 | Piyush Chawla | 9 | 2 | Sussex | Worcestershire | Worcester | June 11, 2009 | Won |
| 101* | – | Ravi Shastri | 7 | 3 | Glamorgan | Middlesex | Albergavenny | June 10, 1989 | Drawn |
| 101 | – | Nawab of Pataudi Jr | 3 | 1 | Sussex | Hampshire | Portsmouth | June 26, 1965 | Lost |
| 100 | 100 | VVS Laxman | 3 | 4 | Lancashire | Surrey | Kennington | September 19, 2007 | Lost |
| 100 | 98 | Sachin Tendulkar | 5 | 4 | Yorkshire | Durham | Durham | August 4, 1992 | Won |
| 100 | 229 | Mohammad Azharuddin | 4 | 1 | Derbyshire | Warwickshire | Birmingham | June 28, 1991 | Won |
| 100* | – | Kapil Dev | 6 | 3 | Northamptonshire | Derbyshire | Northampton | August 14, 1982 | Won |
| 100 | – | Kapil Dev | 7 | 1 | Worcestershire | Middlesex | Lord’s | April 27, 1985 | Lost |
# represents Century on debut
+ represents Century on last appearance
– The fastest century recorded is off 82 balls by Piyush Chawla in 2009 on his County Championship debut.
– Piyush Chawla is the only Indian cricketer to score a century on his County Championship debut.
– Virender Sehwag scored a century in 92 balls (130 off 111), which was his last appearance in County Championship in 2003.
– Nawab of Pataudi Sr scored double centuries in consecutive innings (231* and 222) in August 1933.
Centuries on debut appearance:
102* – Piyush Chawla in 2009
Centuries in last appearance:
130 – Virender Sehwag in 2003
113* – VVS Laxman in 2009
Centuries in consecutive innings:
231* and 222 – Nawab of Pataudi in 1933
165 and 161 – Dinesh Mongia in 2006
109 and 135 – VVS Laxman in 2009
107 and 133* – Ravi Shastri in 1991
113* and 113 – VVS Laxman in 2009
Centuries in consecutive matches:
103* and 100 – Kapil Dev in 1982
110 and 160* – Mohammad Azharuddin in 1991
129* and 212 – Mohammad Azharuddin in 1991
Centuries in both innings:
127 & 101* by Ravi Shastri in June 1989
Team-wise distribution:
12 – Lancashire
8 – Derbyshire
7 – Glamorgan, Warestershire
5 – Leicestershire
3 – Northamptonshire, Somerset
2 – Sussex
1 – Essex, Kent, Warwickshire, Yorkshire
Opposition-wise distribution:
7 – Middlesex
5 – Glamorgan, Warwickshire
4 – Hampshire, Somerset
3 – Durham, Gloucestershire, Surrey
2 – Derbyshire, Essex, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire
1 – Northamptonshire, Sussex, Worcestershire
Venue-wise distribution:
5 – Manchester, Worcester
4 – Lord’s
3 – Cardiff, Kennington, Leicester, Weston-super-Mare
2 – Albergavenny, Portsmouth, Swansea
1 – Birmingham, Bristol, Buxton, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Chesterfield, Chester-le-Street, Derby, Durham, Eastbourne, Gloucester, Lianelli, Liverpool, Neath, Northampton, Nottingham, Southampton, Southgate, Taunton
Year-wise distribution:
8 – 1991
5 – 2009
4 – 1933
2 – 1980, 1982, 1989, 1994, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2013
1 – 1934, 1938, 1950, 1965, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1992, 2000
Batting Position-wise distribution:
18 – No.4
9 – No.3, No.5
5 – Opening, No.6
2 – No.7, No.9
1 – No.8
Match Inning-wise distribution:
20 – 1st innings
17 – 2nd innings
12 – 3rd innings
2 – 4th innings
Result-wise distribution:
23 – Draw
18 – Won
10 – Lost
Note:
Abdul Kardar was a Pakistan citizen when he played in the County Championship. He played for India in 1946 before moving permanently to Pakistan in 1947.
Read more: Indians in County cricket
(Bharath Seervi is cricket statistician who is obsessed with digging numbers, facts and records related to the game. An active member of Society of Cricket Statisticians of India, he blogs at www.cricketseervistats.blogspot.com. He can be followed on Twitter at www.twitter.com/SeerviBharath and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SeerviCricket)