Only 1 batter has outdone Steven Smith among Australia’s top run-scorers in the 2023-25 WTC – and there’s a surprise at No. 6 in this top 7
Australia has reached its second World Test Championship Final in succession and will need to beat South Africa at Lord’s to defend its crown.
The top-ranked side in the world has been ruthless in the 2023-25 WTC cycle, scoring runs in abundance both home and away, with their proven Test cricket performers again producing the goods.
During the period, Steve Smith has passed 10,000 Test runs and the nation has cemented its status as the current top force in international Test cricket.
In a WTC cycle that included huge totals and brilliant displays of individual brilliance, who were the highest run scorers for Australia?
Let’s dive right in…
7. David Warner – 584 WTC runs in 2023-25
Despite retiring at the start of 2024 and missing almost a year of the current WTC cycle, Warner still managed to hit enough runs to help Australia on their way to the Final.
He signed off from Test cricket with 584 runs in 16 innings, averaged 36.50 and notched a high score of 164. Warner showed glimpses of his vintage form at the top of the order, adding three fifties in his short 2023-25 WTC cameo.
6. Mitchell Marsh – 823 WTC runs in 2023-25
The ‘Bison’ has been, as ever dependable all-rounder for Australia, building handy innings in their middle order time and time again. He’s hit 823 runs from 25 innings in this WTC cycle but has fallen behind Cameron Green and Beau Webster in the all-rounder pecking order.
He’s struck one century and six fifties at an average of 35.78 and always seemed to add helpful runs when they were needed.
5. Marnus Labuschagne – 935 WTC runs in 2023-25
Despite being in the top five WTC run scorers for Australia, the 2023-25 campaign has been far from ideal for Labuschagne, who has averaged just 28.33.
The fact he’s still faced over 2000 deliveries shows how highly he’s rated by the selectors, and his eight half-centuries highlight his quality even when not at the heights we’ve grown to expect. He’s only notched one century and has struggled to build on some solid starts this cycle.
4. Alex Carey – 954 WTC runs in 2023-25
Many questioned the decision to insert white-ball star, Alex Carey, into the Test side, but he has silenced his critics with some quality batting and 954 runs in 30 innings and a highest score of 156.
He’s held together the lower-order while maintaining a strike rate of 63.64 and has repeatedly played crucial rescue knocks to save Australia when they’ve been toiling.
3. Travis Head – 1,117 WTC runs in 2023-25
When Travis Head gets going, he’s one of the most aggressive and impressive batters in Test cricket. He scores at will, having claimed 1117 runs at a strike rate of 81.06 – the highest in the side.
With three centuries and five fifties, he’s been imperative to his nation’s success, scoring at a rapid pace and key in changing the tide and momentum of a game while averaging 35.66.
2. Steven Smith – 1,324 WTC runs in 2023-25
Smith is inevitable wherever he goes and is truly one of the most difficult men to dismiss in cricket. For the current WTC cycle, he’s continued to anchor Australia’s innings in a range of conditions with an almighty five centuries and four fifties to his name.
He’s averaged 41.37 and has shown his class with 1324 runs in 35 innings, packed with his iconic cover drives and fearless pull shots. He joined the 10,000 Test run club and has cemented his status as a generational great.
1. Usman Khawaja – 1,422 WTC runs in 2023-25
Khawaja has been Australia’s most prolific scorer, standing up tall in Australia and being utterly dominant in the sub continent. Averaging 41.82 and consuming over 3,000 deliveries, Khawaja has been his nation’s bedrock at the top of the order.
1422 runs have come in 37 innings as he continues to shine, even in the absence of his longtime opening partner, David Warner. Khawaja will need to again produce a big score to help his side in the WTC Final.
Read next: Did Chris Gayle get named in this West Indies’ best Test XI of the past 40 years?
