Murali Vijay vs KL Rahul: Comparing their Test careers

Test careers of KL Rahul and Murali Vijay have been fairly contrasting. Both have represented India in 61 Tests. Despite the similar number of matches, their careers and impact on the game have been different.

Vijay made his debut in 2008 against Australia in Nagpur, when he replaced an unavailable Gautam Gambhir. The Chennai-born quickly became a main member of India’s Test setup for nearly a decade. He made a name for himself in tough overseas tours, including in England (2014) and Australia (2014-15), where he went on to be among the top scorers for the visiting Indian team.

On the other hand, Rahul began his Test career in 2014. The young Rahul hammered a century in just his second Test at Sydney. But unlike Vijay, Rahul’s Test career has seen frequent ups and downs. Despite his talent and abilities, Rahul has often been asked to play at different positions in the batting order. However, he has gone on to become one of the most dependable batters, the most recent being in the ongoing 2025 Test series against England, where he has been enjoying a dream run. Notably, he has also captained in three Test matches, and registered wins on two occasions. 

Murali Vijay vs KL Rahul — Test Stats and Records Comparison

Vijay-Rahul as openers

There was a phase when both Vijay and Rahul were India’s opening pair in red-ball cricket. They opened together in 26 innings but managed to put together only 543 runs at an average stand of just 20.88, the lowest among pairs with 25 or more innings. The 2018 tour to Australia saw them both struggle against the new ball. Vijay registered scores of 11, 18, 0, 20, and Rahul's were 2, 44, 2, 0. Their dismal run eventually led to India opting for new options at the top, like Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, and Prithvi Shaw.

Murali Vijay retired in 2023

The now-retired Vijay last played for India in 2018 and has since said goodbye to international cricket. He finished his career with 3982 runs at an average of 38.28, including 12 centuries. His runs in the 2014 England series (402 runs) and 2014-15 Australia series (482 runs) were among the main highlights of his career.

KL Rahul going through dream run

Rahul is currently one of the most experienced players in the Indian Test set-up, as the veteran trio of Ravichandran Ashwin, Rohit and Virat Kohli have retired. In the current Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, he has also been going through a purple patch, scoring a century at Lord’s (his second at the venue), a 137 at Headingley, and a 55 at Edgbaston, and has looked the most comfortable guy at the crease.

He’s also on the brink of joining an elite list as he needs just 11 runs to become the fourth Indian batter after Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, and Sunil Gavaskar to score 1000 runs in England, his favourite overseas soil. With a couple of games still to go in the series, the Karnataka-born is most likely to go past the landmark by the end of the tour.