Cricket witnessed its busiest year in Tests in two decades in 2024, with 50 Tests taking place till now and three more set to begin on December 26 -- not bad for a format that has supposedly been on a virtual deathbed for years in the eyes of many.

The last time the annual Test count had crossed the half-century mark was in 2004, in which 51 five-day matches took place. This year is set to end with 53 Tests -- one fewer than 2002.

Had the weather been kinder in Greater Noida, India, in early September, or if the BCCI -- the richest board in the world -- had installed a modern drainage system at the Greater Noida Sports Complex, the Afghanistan-New Zealand one-off Test would not have been washed away, and the Test count in 2024 could have matched the tally from 2002.

As the jam-packed year in Tests winds down, it's natural to wonder which team have been the most dominant out of the 12 Test-playing countries. The answer to this question, however, is not that straightforward.

England have won the most matches this year, nine, but they have also lost more than any other team, eight.

Australia have been mostly dominant this year in Tests, despite having suffered a loss to the West Indies at home in January; against a team who are currently bottom of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points table.The Aussies also did not play Tests outside their continent at all, as their only tour was to New Zealand, which surely helped them boost their numbers in the WTC table, where they are currently third.

At present, South Africa top the WTC table and are definitely a candidate for this year's best Test team. But then again, in their only tour against a team considered one of the top sides, the Proteas suffered a 2-0 defeat in New Zealand.

The usually dominant India have also been inconsistent, suffering their first-ever series sweep in a three-match series against New Zealand in October-November.
Clean sweeps over South Africa and India may indicate that New Zealand have been the team to beat this year, but the Black Caps themselves were whitewashed at home by Australia and away in Sri Lanka this year.

And if one refuses to go too much into the details and looks at win percentages to determine who has been the best, the title would go to Ireland, who have won both of their one-off Test assignments against Afghanistan and Zimbabwe.

Even without counting Ireland's one-off successes as clean sweeps, 2024 has been the year of whitewashes in Tests.

Out of the 19 completed series this year, barring the two one-off series, 11 have ended in clean sweeps -- Australia whitewashed New Zealand and Pakistan; New Zealand clean swept India and South Africa; Sri Lanka clean swept Bangladesh and New Zealand; Bangladesh clean swept Pakistan; India clean swept Bangladesh; South Africa clean swept Sri Lanka and Bangladesh; and England clean swept the West Indies.

The high number of one-sided series may seem like the result of one or two teams being treated as whipping boys, but that has not been the case.

Australia have series sweeps over Pakistan and New Zealand -- the latter have a 2-0 sweep over the Proteas and a 3-0 win over India to their name.
Both India and South Africa handed Bangladesh 2-0 series defeats, while the Tigers, just like the Aussies, whitewashed Pakistan at home. Bangladesh also drew a Test against the West Indies, who were beaten 3-0 in England.

The chaotic results column is overall a good sign for Test cricket.

Bangladesh winning in Pakistan and the West Indies, India getting humbled at home by the Kiwis, and South Africa seemingly finding their spring back in the longest format are all positive indications of what's in store.

Even though the number of Tests is set to drop off in 2025 as the current WTC cycle comes to an end, neutral fans will hope to see the chaos sparked this year sustain, making every Test series in 2025 a must-watch.