Brian Lara's 501*: The Highest Score in First-Class Cricket

On 3–6 June 1994, Brian Lara scored 501 not out for Warwickshire against Durham in a County Championship match at Edgbaston. The innings — 308 fours, 10 sixes, 7 hours 54 minutes — is the highest individual score in the history of first-class cricket.

The Record-Breaking Context

Just months earlier, Lara had set the Test cricket record score with 375 for West Indies against England at Antigua. Joining Warwickshire as an overseas player, he proceeded to break Hanif Mohammad's first-class record of 499, set in 1959.

The Innings

Lara batted for 7 hours and 54 minutes across two days. He hit 308 fours and 10 sixes in an innings of sustained, remorseless attack. Durham's bowling attack was not Test-standard, but the sustained concentration required to bat for nearly eight hours and reach 501 is extraordinary by any measure.

Breaking the Record

Lara overtook Hanif Mohammad's 499 by driving the ball to the boundary to move to 500, then immediately scoring a single to reach 501*. Warwickshire declared immediately after, as the match needed to progress. The innings remains unmatched 30+ years later.

The Remarkable Year

1994 was Brian Lara's defining year: 375 in the Antigua Test (March), 501* for Warwickshire (June). No other batsman in history has held both the Test and first-class record scores simultaneously.