
Think of it as a great resume but one that doesn't quite land you the high paying salary you expected. In other words, think of it as being a momentous birthday but none of those you so dearly love actually end up arriving there.
A famous triple century in Test match cricket is like that knock that lets you be the darling of the world media, but doesn't see your team winning the battle in the end.
Many of the world's great batters have come and scored, and risen to fame by scoring a Test century. And yet, not all of their sublime efforts have led their team to the path of a win. Hundreds, have been hit by countless, and yet not all who've made glorious Test centuries have earned a win for their teams.
Wondering which ones, in particular? Here, we have listed some famed batting efforts that made the bowlers tired and waned out in fact, but still weren't enough, as one would later find out to earn their team a victory.
Brian Lara's 375 vs England in 1994

Brian Lara has been cricket's Muhammad Ali with the bat. A grand master of majestic innings, created with virtuosity and a sublime sense of style with the bat, he's made the highest individual scores in both first-class and Test match cricket, but before he made that sprawling 400 not out in Antigua, he struck the same ground ten years ago with a dashing 375.
In so doing, Lara broke a record that stood the tests of time for 36 long years: Sir Sobers' 365 that happened in 1958.
But back in 1994, the English team in Antigua rather unsuspectingly bowled at Lara and co., never realising that a moment in time so precious would be in the reckoning, as Brian Lara, then in the purple patch of his life, had his own plans.
His 375 was a flamboyant knock and one that made the West Indies occupy world headlines after a period time where their decline was imminent and being felt by all.
However, the game didn't really yield a winning result for the West Indies and ended in a draw. All that remains from that point in time is the famous image of Sir Sobers jogging to the ground to give a bear hug to the then best batsman of his time.
Sanath Jayasuriya's 340 vs India in 1997

Back in 1997, many moons ago, when Sri Lankan cricket hadn't heard of the present day audacious talents of Asalanka and Nissanka, there was a certain Sanath Jayasuriya, the legendary batter whose star had risen in the 1996 World Cup itself, when he and Kaluwitharana formed a dashing opening pair for Sri Lanka in the white-ball firmament.
But this time around, Jayasuriya, attacking and aggressive as ever, played a more subtle, calmer role with the bat.
In the first Test of Colombo itself, the visiting Indian side, then led by Sachin Tendulkar, the icon, opened their account in the first inning by scoring not one but three centuries.
Azharuddin with his 126, Sidhu up the order with a sublime 111 in his 250-minute stay at the crease and Sachin himself, with a charismatic 143 increased the pressure over the Sri Lankans.
India made a first inning score of 537. The Sri Lankans waited to respond and did so in a gargantuan fashion, with Jayasuriya becoming the darling of the Test cricket world, thanks to a phenomenal 340 odd knock that took place from 799 minutes spent at the wicket. Prasad, Kuruvilla, even Kumble and the likes were left wilting under pressure. At the other end, Roshan Mahanama too, scored a refined double hundred.
The Sri Lankans batted, and batted and batted, leaving India exasperated, thanks to a 271 over outing with the bat. A world record team total of 952 was achieved.
Expectedly, the game ended in a draw for time ran out for more innings to even happen and Jayasuriya's heroics were lauded.
Chris Gayle's 317 vs South Africa in 2005

The West Indies bowlers were found out by the touring South Africans in 2005 and there was hardly anyone from the Caribbean contingent who seemed threatening enough to curb a Protea attack that featured the likes of AB de Villiers, Kallis himself and even Graeme Smith. There was Gibbs as well and resultantly, the Windies were smashed 2-0 in a major series win for South Africa.
But one man, in the fourth Test, that too, could have gone the visitors' way, stood up with the bat. That was the 'Universe Boss' Chris Gayle himself. In pounding a famous and attacking 317, that saw the lanky Jamaican at the wicket for 630 odd minutes, the Protea, led by Ntini, Kallis and Pollock were left red under a spell of red-hot batting.
In the context of the series, the match ended on the right note for the West Indies with the game at St John's, Antigua ending in a draw. But the critics, many of whom have never touched the red ball, let alone time it from the middle of the bat, said Gayle's inning was drab and dull. Although, it led Windies to avoid humiliation of another Test match defeat with their team total soaring like a Boeing 747 (that many runs were exactly scored in the inning).
Sangakkara's 319 vs Bangladesh in 2014

Truth be told, it's been so far back in time, now that you think of it, that in some sense, Kumar Sangakkara's mega 319 vs Bangladesh has started to feel some rather forgotten innings.
Not to forget the very fact that his marathon effort led his team to a whopping score of 587, still one of the most sternest displays with the bat for Sri Lanka against Bangladesh.
But while Sangakkara scored a fine triple hundred, the next best that anyone in his team could score was just 75, thanks to Mahela Jayawardene.
However, in reply, Bangladesh were spruced by the batting efforts of Shamsur and Imrul Kayes, both of whom scored fighting centuries and thus the duration of the hosts' stay at the crease prolonged.
They were now at the score of 426, after which the Lankans batted again and their familiar lion with the bat, Sangakkara made runs again, would you believe it?
Sangakkara, fresh from a triple century, made another century in the innings that followed: his gutsy 105 came off just 144 odd deliveries.
Chandimal too, replied with a ton. But resultantly, the Bangladeshi bowlers toiled hard in the middle and the match in Chattogram ended in a draw.
Brendon McCullum's 302 vs India in 2014

The only Kiwi batter, thus far, in all these decades of playing international Test match cricket to have hit a triple century, Brendon McCullum's 302 against India came at a time where he was at the peak of his batting powers. And he was just 33 back then, when in Wellington, one of New Zealand's favourite hunting grounds, the right hander struck a whirlwind triple hundred.
At his part, Brendon McCullum engaged in real red ball bashing, hitting during the course of his famous triple hundred, 32 boundaries and even 4 sixes.
In the defense of his famed triple ton, it could be argued that owing to the fact that the hosts, out for under 200 in the first innings, were found out by the Indian bowlers, something mega had to happen in their second outing with the bat.
That was especially down to the fact that the Indian batters, especially Dhawan and Rahane, had dug in, scoring 98 and 118, respectively. And thus replied, Brendon McCullum, who in a 775-minute-stay at the crease, scored the first and only Test triple of his career. Alas, it couldn't get his team to a win, but to a respectable draw.
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