SPORTS
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When Steven Smith reached 31 on the first day of the Lord's Test, he became the first batter to complete 9000 Test runs in less than 100 Tests. He also completed 15000 runs in international cricket.
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Smith walked back unbeaten on 85, and he will be aiming for his 32nd Test century on Day 2. He forged crucial partnerships with Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head to put Australia on top.
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In terms of innings taken to reach 9000 runs, Smith (174) is just behind Kumar Sangakkara, who achieved it in 172 innings, though the latter played four more matches.
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After Smith and Sangakkara comes Rahul Dravid, whose 9000 Test runs came in 176 innings. Dravid finished his career with over 13000 runs and 36 centuries.
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Brian Lara is on the fourth position, having taken 177 innings to reach the 9000-run mark. Lara, for the majority of his career, played in a very mediocre Windies team, and he rarely had support from other batters.
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Ricky Ponting rounds up the top-five on this list, reaching his 9000 Test runs in the Ashes series in 2006 at Brisbane. Ponting retired with 41 centuries to his name, second only to Sachin Tendulkar.