India's Rahul Dravid equalled a world record with his appearance in the second Test against South Africa at Kolkata on Sunday.
Dravid had made his Test debut against England at Lord's in June 1996. Since then he has appeared in 84 Tests on the trot without missing a single one.
Dravid's 84 Tests in a row equals the record for maximum Tests played by any player in Test history since debut without missing a match.
Incidentally, the player whose world record Dravid equalled is none other than fellow teammate Sachin Tendulkar who made this record from his debut against Pakistan at Karachi in November 1989 to the Harare Test against Zimbabwe in June 2001.
Interestingly enough, before Tendulkar it was another Indian, Kapil Dev, who held the record of playing most Tests (66) in a row since his debut Test in October 1978.
The only current player capable to challenge Dravid's record is Australia's Adam Gilchrist, who has played 61 Tests on the trot since his debut in November 1999.
New Zealand's John Reid and England's Tony Greig are the only ones to have appeared in fifty-plus Tests without missing a single Test during their entire Test career.
England's all-rounder Frank Woolley was the first player to appear in 50 or more matches in a row since debut between 1909 to 1926.
The following table lists players who have played 50 or more Test matches in a row since debut.
Player | Country | Tests | Period |
Sachin Tendulkar | Ind | 84 | 1989-90 to 2001-02 |
Rahul Dravid | Ind | 84 | 1996 to 2004-05 |
Kapil Dev | Ind | 66 | 1978-79 to 1984-85 |
Ian Healy | Aus | 64 | 1988-89 to 1994-95 |
Rohan Kanhai | WI | 61 | 1957 to 1968-69 |
Adam Gilchrist | Aus | 61 | 1999-00 to 2004-05 |
John Reid | NZ | 58+ | 1949 to 1965 |
Tony Greig | Eng | 58+ | 1972 to 1977 |
Alistair Campbell | Zim | 56 | 1992-93 to 2001-02 |
Gary Kirsten | SA | 53 | 1993-94 to 1998-99 |
Frank Woolley | Eng | 52 | 1909 to 1926 |
Rodney Marsh | Aus | 52 | 1970-71 to 1977 |
Andy Flower | Zim | 52 | 1992-93 to 2001-02 |
Greg Chappell | Aus | 51 | 1970-71 to 1977 |
Note: + consecutive appearances from debut to retirement