Top 8 Bowlers With Most Wickets In Test Cricket

Test Cricket – 5 days game, 15 sessions, 90 overs each day and 40 wickets. The test cricket format remains the ultimate test of any cricketer skills in his career. Either for a batsman or a bowler the test format remains the same where former is judged by the number of runs he has scored in his career while the later is judged by the number of wickets he has taken in his career. With the advent of T20l Cricket in recent times the test cricket is very much different from the earlier decades not played in a ideally test cricket style. The current crop of players have restricted themselves to the limited overs cricket only.

Patience, Hard work and mental strength are some of the basic traits of test cricket. It’s hard to say if batsmen have dominated the game of cricket in history. 

Having said, let us take a look at the top eight bowlers with most wickets in test cricket (red-ball cricket):

Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) –

From 1992-2010, Muthaih Muralitharan was the Vital cog for Sri Lanka across the formats. Even in limited overs cricket he is the highest wicket-taker in history with 534 Wickets. A right-arm off break bowler was the fastest to 350, 400, 450, 500, 550, 600, 650, 700, 750 and 800 Wickets in test cricket. Muthaih Muralitharan was the single bowler to take more than 50 wickets against every test playing nation. After Jim Laker, he was the only bowler to achieve the feat of 9 wickets in an innings twice. In a calendar year, Murali had taken 75 wickets three times (2000, 2001 and 2006).

44039 – most number of balls bowled by a bowler in a test career. 493 – most number of wickets on home conditions by any bowler and still the record held by him. 11 – Most number of man of the series awards by any bowler in test cricket.

Also Read | Top 5 Bowlers fastest to 200 wickets In Test Cricket

Shane Warne (Australia) –

The leg-break spin bowler from Australia Shane Warne is at the second place of highest wicket-takers. Shane Warne was part of the Golden Era of Australia team under the captaincy of Ricky Ponting. One of the greatest spinners alongside Muralitharan to completely redefine the art of leg spin-bowling like never before. From 1992-2007, Shane Warne was the frontline bowler of the Australia team in many famous victories where he contributed with bat also as an effective lower order batsman.

Anil Kumble (India) –

An Engineer turned into the Cricketer.  Probably the greatest match-winner India has ever produced. After Erapalli Prasanna (100 wickets in 20 tests), Kumble was the second bowler to claim 100 wickets in 21 tests. Kumble also holds the record of 50 wickets in 10 tests was later broken by R.Ashwin. After Jim Laker, Anil Kumble is the only bowler to achieve the feat of 10 wickets in an innings. 40850 balls bowled – Second bowler after Muthaih Muralitharan to finish in his test career.

After Erapalli Prasanna and BS Chandrasekhar, Anil Kumble will go down as the greatest bowler in Indian Cricket History. Kumble was the captain of team India also in the last years of his cricketing career.

Also Read | Top 5 Bowlers With Fastest To 100 Wickets in Test Cricket

James Anderson (England) –

The Enigma called James Anderson. The current frontline right-arm medium fast bowler for England in test cricket is the leading wicket-taker in England Cricket History. There are the two sides of James Anderson on his day he is next to unplayable with his swing and seam but on the rough day he look very ordinary without any control over his line and lengths – which also gives a brief about his calibre in the first half of his career.

Glenn McGrath (Australia) –

Nickname “Pigeon”. After great Dennis Lillie and Jeff Thomson if there was a bowler who will go down as the greatest bowler in Australia cricket history then it will be Glenn McGrath. A very difficult bowler to play against who hardly provided any loose deliveries to score runs and the frontline bowler of Golden Era of the great Australian team of Ricky Ponting.

104 – Glenn McGrath record for removing the batsman at the score of zero. It is the most by any bowler in history.

Courtney Walsh (West Indies) –

The phenomenon called Courtney Walsh would be right term to describe someone like Courtney Walsh. After the retirement of Joel Garner and Malcolm Marshall, Courtney Walsh became the frontline bowler of West Indies in the early 90s alongside Curtly Ambrose. The pair destroyed the opposition line-up with pace, rhythm and Swing. Courtney Walsh was the only bowler in West Indies cricket history to enter the club of 500 wickets in red-ball cricket. Curtly Ambrose with 405 Wickets in test cricket is second highest wicket taker bowler in West Indies Cricket History.

Stuart Broad (England) –

An opening batsman in the early childhood who became front line fast bowler later for the England team. We remember Stuart Broad for When Yuvraj Singh smashed him six sixes in an over during the inaugural T20 World cup 2007. "Six sixes in an over, Yuvraj Singh finishes things off in style." This was the reaction from the commentator. A fast bowler was treated like this in the start of his career could have been the end of everything for Stuart Broad.

But Stuart Broad has come a long way to enter the elite list with great numbers in test cricket. Broad will definitely go down as the one greatest fast bowler in England Cricket History. Currently Broad is the second highest wicket taker for England after James Anderson.

Dale Steyn (South Africa) –

There will never be another Dale Steyn in the coming decades or centuries. Test cricket and Dale Steyn when gets going probably there was no better sight in the world to watch in the loop. Fast, Furious and Aggression Dale Steyn had everything in his repertoire to make the batsman dance on his tunes. Even in the subcontinent pitches (93 Wickets in 22 Tests) Dale Steyn has written his name in the history books with the most wickets by a visiting bowler in terms of the least matches.

A right-arm fast bowler of South Africa after the great Allan Donald who took the legacy of former to set the Surreal records in cricket.

Also Read | Top 10 Highest innings totals in Test Cricket