Rohit Sharma's retirement from Test cricket ahead of India's tour of England 2025 opened up an opening spot in the Indian batting lineup. Following his promising knocks during the Australia tour in 2024, KL Rahul was chosen to replace him at the top of the order.
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Grabbing the opportunity with both hands, Rahul finished the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy as India's second-best batter with 532 runs in the series, with the help of 2 centuries and 2 fifties, guiding India to the 2-2 series tie.
Following up his form, he started the home series against the West Indies in Ahmedabad with another century, surpassing his best-scoring calendar year in Test cricket.
In this article, The Sporting News takes a look at KL Rahul's year-wise numbers in Tests.
How has KL Rahul performed in Tests in every calendar year?
Rahul's bright start to his Test career saw him score big runs in the first few years of his career. He scored 633 runs in 2017, which was his best-performing year until 2025.
Despite his slump in the late 2010s, Rahul was backed by the management under both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma as he performed well again in England in 2021.
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After multiple changes in his batting order, Rahul returned to the opening position in what could have been his last shot at sealing his spot in the absence of Kohli and Sharma.
The 33-year-old has so far lived up to the expectations as a senior batter, with his 5th fifty-plus score and 3rd century in the last 11 innings.
KL Rahul's Test record by calendar year
| Year | Innings | Runs | Avg | Highest | 50/100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13* | 649* | 54.08 | 137 | 3/2 |
| 2024 | 16 | 493 | 35.21 | 86 | 4/0 |
| 2023 | 5 | 143 | 28.60 | 101 | 0/1 |
| 2022 | 8 | 137 | 17.12 | 50 | 1/0 |
| 2021 | 10 | 461 | 46.10 | 129 | 1/2 |
| 2019 | 5 | 110 | 22.00 | 44 | 0/0 |
| 2018 | 22 | 468 | 22.28 | 149 | 1/1 |
| 2017 | 14 | 633 | 48.69 | 90 | 9/0 |
| 2016 | 9 | 539 | 59.88 | 199 | 1/2 |
| 2015 | 8 | 252 | 31.50 | 110 | 0/2 |
| 2014 | 2 | 4 | 2.00 | 3 | 0/0 |
*3 Test matches left.