In the latest edition of our Stats Comparison series featuring legendary batters, we turn the spotlight on two players who often flew under the radar but were integral to their teams’ success — Mahela Jayawardene and Rahul Dravid. While they may not have been the most glamorous names in world cricket, their consistency, composure, and commitment made them invaluable assets. Both were the backbone of their sides and epitomized what it means to be true team players.
Before diving into their head-to-head stats, I want to share how working on this series has deepened my appreciation for these cricketing greats. It’s been an enlightening experience, allowing me to rediscover some of my favorite players and understand their impact on the game at a much deeper level.
Let’s now explore the career statistics of Mahela Jayawardene vs Rahul Dravid — two unsung legends who defined reliability and class.
Mahela Jayawardene
Mahela Jayawardene is one of the greatest batters in the history of Sri Lankan cricket along with his long time batting partner Kumar Sangakkara. Mahela Jayawardene was a great servant to Sri Lankan cricket and he was the backbone of their batting. Mahela Jayawardene was also a great captain for Sri Lanka and he played for almost 20 years.
Test Cricket
Mahela Jayawardene along with Kumar Sangakkara are two of the few batters who have scored 10,000+ runs in both Test and ODI Cricket. He has played a total of 149 Test Matches for Sri Lanka and he has made 11,814 runs and he made them at an average of 49.84. Mahela Jayawardene also made 34 Test hundreds and he had a highest score of 374 which is in the Top 5 highest individual scores in test cricket history.
Check here Top 5 Best Mahela Jayawardene Innings
ODI Cricket
Mahela Jayawardene is the second most capped ODI player of all time and in his glorious career he made a big impact. He played a mammoth 448 ODIs for Sri Lanka and in all those matches he scored 12650 runs at an average of 33.37. He also made 19 ODI centuries with a highest score of 144. Mahela Jayawardene was also part of the Sri Lankan team which reached the 2007 and 2011 World Cup final.
Format | Test Cricket | ODIs |
Matches | 149 | 448 |
Runs scored | 11814 | 12650 |
Batting average | 49.84 | 33.37 |
100s/50s | 34/50 | 19/77 |
Top score | 374 | 144 |
Rahul Dravid
Once again I get the opportunity to talk about this great batter that is Rahul Dravid and this will not be the last time I will get to talk about him in this series of articles. I again want to say that I was a big fan of his and especially his ability to do anything for the team because it is not easy to do what he did. He was the foil that made the Indian team one of the best of all time.
Test Cricket
The favorite format of Rahul Dravid in his career and he left an indelible mark on the sport in this format. He played a total of 164 Test Matches for India and he made a total of 13288 test runs. He made these runs at a great average of 52.88. He also made 36 Test hundreds in his career. Rahul Dravid was the best number 3 in test cricket and the 30,000+ balls he faced are proof.
ODI Cricket
Rahul Dravid was less fancied in the 50 overs format of the sport but here also be outdid himself and made over 10,000 runs in ODI Cricket as well. Rahul Dravid played 344 ODIs for India and he scored 10889 runs in ODI Cricket. He made all these runs at an average of 39.16. Rahul Dravid was a force to be reckoned with and it was one of my greatest pleasures to have seen him bat.
Format | Test Cricket | ODI Cricket |
Matches | 164 | 344 |
Runs scored | 13288 | 10889 |
Batting average | 52.88 | 39.16 |
100s/50s | 36/63 | 12/83 |
Top score | 270 | 153 |
Jayawardene vs Dravid Stats Comparison
Now it is time to compare the stats of these 2 great players and in the test format there is a small gap but Rahul Dravid has a superior average and he has also made 1000+ more runs than Mahela Jayawardene so the edge is with Rahul Dravid in test cricket. And in ODIs Mahela Jayawardene has made 2000+ more runs but in 100 matches more and Rahul Dravid has a 6 then superior average so here both are equal.
