Australian vice-captain Steve Smith crossed 11,000 Test runs during the second Test against South Africa. Reaching the milestone in 226 innings at an average above 55, the 37-year-old joined cricket’s elite as he continues to dominate red-ball cricket.
Australia Test vice-captain and talismanic batter Steve Smith has climbed the Mount Everest of red-ball cricket, crossing an 11,000-run mark during the second Test of the ongoing three-match series against South Africa at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Wednesday, October 21.
Smith entered the Gqeberha Test with 10972 runs and needed just 28 runs to join former Australian captains Allan Border (11174) and Ricky Ponting (13378) in an elite list of Australian run-scorers. In the first innings of the second Test against South Africa, the 37-year-old scored exactly 28 off 88 balls to achieve the historic feat.
Steve Smith, who has often been compared to legendary batter and former Australian captain Sir Donald Bradman for his unprecedented consistency and unorthodox technique, took 226 innings to reach the 11,000-run mark.
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The Numbers Behind Steve Smith’s Test Dominance
Steve Smith’s dominance in Test cricket is seemingly equivalent to that of any modern legend. Transforming from leg spinner to a full-time batter, the New South Wales Cricketer has forged a unique path to greatness.
With 226 Test innings, Smith became the fifth-fastest batter after Kumar Sangakkara (208), Brian Lara (213), Ricky Ponting (222), and Sachin Tendulkar to complete the 11,000-run mark in the history of red-ball cricket at the international level. With 127 matches, third-fastest batter after Lara (121) and Sangakkara (122) to achieve the historic feat.
Crossing 11,000 Test runs with a batting average of 55, the Australian talismanic batter is the second batter in Test history to maintain an average above 55 while reaching this monumental milestone, standing alongside legendary Sri Lankan batter Kumar Sangakkara, who averaged 57.83 at the point of his 11,000th run.
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Additionally, Steve Smith is the second batter after England captain and talisman Joe Root to complete 11,000 Test runs after his debut in red-ball cricket in 2010, becoming part of an exclusive group of modern-era titans who have defied the changing dynamics of international cricket to rack up staggering run aggregates.
In fact, other than Smith and Root, no other batter who made his Test debut after 2010 has crossed 10, 000 runs in the format, making their joint dominance over the past decade a defining era of red-ball cricket. Additionally, Smith is the 12th player overall to achieve the milestone, underlining his place among the format’s most prolific run-scorers.
Steve Smith’s Peak Consistency
As Steve Smith crossed the 11,000-run mark with an exceptional batting average above 55, what makes it even more intriguing is the staggering peak of consistency he maintained during the height of his career, when he routinely toyed with bowling attacks across conditions and made century-making look like a routine habit.
When Smith reached 5000 Test runs in 2017, the former Australian captain’s batting average was 60.24 in 97 innings. Thereafter, the veteran batter maintained an average of 63.76 when he reached 6,000 Test runs in January 2018 and 64.22 at 7,000 runs in November 2019. His average stood at 60.11 at 8,000 runs in March 2022, 60.22 at 9,000 in June 2023, and 55.87 at 10,000 in January 2025.
Now, Steve Smith has accumulated 11000 Test runs while batting at an average of 55.55 across 127 matches and 226 innings, featuring 37 centuries and 45 half-centuries. Even as his career average has naturally shifted from the dizzying heights of 64.22 down to 55.55 over the course of his journey, Smith has maintained peak consistency in the format.
From crossing the 5,000-run mark at 60.24 to completing his 11,000-run milestone at 55.55, the former Australian captain’s Test batting average has rarely dipped below the elite threshold, reinforcing his legacy as a once-in-a-generation maestro whose insatiable appetite for runs defines an era of Australian cricket.
Steve Smith took 97 innings to complete his first 5000 Test runs and needed another 129 innings to rack up his next 6,000 runs, completing the journey to 11,000 Test runs in 226 overall innings.
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Prolonging his Test Career
The Test format has apparently been Steve Smith’s absolute sandbox, where his unmatched technique and insatiable hunger for long innings have allowed him to thrive well past the age where many modern batters begin to fade.
Even at the age of 37, when most of the Test cricketers either endure a lean patch or retire from the format, the veteran batter’s sharp reflexes, meticulous preparation, and supreme understanding of his own game have allowed him to extend his longevity and remain the cornerstone of Australia’s red-ball lineup.
Smith retired from his ODI career after Australia’s Champions Trophy semifinal defeat to Team India last year to dedicate his complete focus to the Test arena. Since retiring from ODIs in March last year, the former Australia captain has featured in 11 Test matches and scored 729 runs, including a century and 4 fifties, at an average of 42.88.
Following the Test series against South Africa, Steve Smith is expected to travel with the Australian squad to India for the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, where he will once again be central to Australia’s ambitions in one of Test cricket’s most demanding environments.