Dravid equals world record

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