Test Cricket is the ultimate best format of the game. Bowlers are an integral part of the game, especially in the test format. Here the bowlers have their ultimate test for their temperament and perseverance. In the test format, bowlers used to bowl unlimited overs in the game, which gave them a better opportunity to pick up more bucks. Though they’re not often in the same limelight as the batsmen, but still, bowlers are on of the most important parts of any test match. Any team needs to pick up 20 wickets in the match to win a test and there are many instances where a bowler was a complete match-winner in the game. Since the beginning, we have seen a lot of good bowlers in test cricket, some of them were spinners and some others were the faster bowlers. Here in this post, we will talk about the bowlers who took the most test wickets among active players.
Most Test Wickets Among Active Players:
Taking wickets is a crucial part of the game as it decides the match’s fortune. Whether being a fast bowler, a finger spinner, or a wrist spinner, they’re an eminent part of the test team lineup. While playing important match-winning innings or taking up a 5-fer or 10-fer these records are very important as the batsmen’s runs. Let’s look at the tally of the most test wickets among active players.
| Player | Span | Matches | Wickets | Average | Economy | Strike Rate | 5W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Anderson | 2003-2024 | 187 | 700 | 26.52 | 2.79 | 56.96 | 32 |
| Nathan Lyon | 2011-2024 | 129 | 530 | 30.28 | 2.93 | 61.81 | 24 |
| Ravi Ashwin | 2011-2024 | 100 | 516 | 23.75 | 2.81 | 50.7 | 36 |
| Tim Southee | 2008-2024 | 100 | 380 | 29.61 | 2.98 | 59.51 | 15 |
| Mitchell Starc | 2011-2024 | 89 | 358 | 27.74 | 3.42 | 48.65 | 14 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 2012-2024 | 72 | 294 | 24.13 | 2.47 | 58.61 | 13 |
| Kagiso Rabada | 2015-2024 | 62 | 291 | 22.05 | 3.37 | 39.23 | 14 |
| Josh Hazlewood | 2014-2024 | 70 | 273 | 24.82 | 2.78 | 53.39 | 12 |
| Kemar Roach | 2009-2024 | 81 | 270 | 27.74 | 3.10 | 53.57 | 11 |
| Pat Cummins | 2011-2024 | 62 | 269 | 22.53 | 2.88 | 46.89 | 12 |
1. James Anderson – 700
Anderson is the topmost name in the wicket-takers list, where he just completed his 700 wicket mark in the India vs England Series. Being at the age of 41 plus, Jimmy is as fit as any youngster and he is still the premiere fast bowler of the English lineup. Anderson’s test career is 21 years long, where he made his debut in 2003 and yet is a premium member of the playing 11. He is now the 3rd highest wicket-taker of all time in test history, just behind Muralitharan and Warne.
2. Nathan Lyon – 530
Nathan Lyon is one of the best spin wizards of the recent time. He is now in the second position of the active players tally where he took the most test wickets(530). In the 13-year-long test career, Lyon has played 129 test matches. Though the majority of the no of matches he played at his home, were still in wicket-taking tally, he took more wickets in the away venue, rather than in home conditions. His bowling average is also comparatively better in the away venues. He took the most no of wickets(42) under the captaincy of Steven Smith in the 2014-23 season.
3. Ravi Ashwin – 516
Ravi Ashwin is another spin wizard of recent times who recently completed his 500 test wickets in the home series against England. In the same series, Ashwin also played the 100th test match in his career in the 5th test match. Though Ashwin took most of his wicket in the home conditions, still his valuable contributions can’t be ignored. He has a whooping average of 21.15 at home and 21.4 in the Asian conditions. Also, Ashwin is in the 4th spot in the most fifers list and took 36 five-wicket hauls in his career.
4. Tim Southee – 380
If you’re talking about New Zealand, you must talk about Tim Southee, who has been their premier fast bowler in test matches for a long time. He has also played the 100th test match in his career against Australia in the 2nd test match. Southee made his debut in 2008 and in his 16 years long career, he took 380 wickets. He had a healthy bowling average of 29.61 and took 15 fifers in his career. Southee is one of the most effective faster bowlers in the Asian contingent. He played 17 matches in Asian conditions, where he took 58 wickets with 26.5 bowling average and 3 five-wicket hauls.
5. Mitchell Starc – 358
Starc is a spearhead of the Aussie bowling lineup with Cummins & Hazelwood being the other ones’. His career was struck by injuries where he missed multiple test matches. Making his debut in 2011, he played 89 test matches so far in his career and took 358 wickets. Though most of the wickets in his career have come from the home turf, still he is one of the most promising fast bowlers in history. Apart from Australia, Starc took most of the wickets in England. He played 14 test matches in England, where he took 60 wickets with an average of 30.05.
6. Ravindra Jadeja – 294
Alongside Ravi Ashwin, Jadeja is one of the most efficient finger spinners in the Indian test team. Jadeja made a strong development with his batting in recent times, though his bowling prowess is also the key. In his test career, Jadeja made 72nd appearances till now, he took 294 wickets so far. He took 213 out of 294 wickets in the home conditions and also took 11 fifers in India. Jadeja took the most wickets against Australia(89) followed by England(70) and South Africa(42).
7. Kagiso Rabada – 291
Rabada is one of the most promising young fast bowlers from South Africa. In his 9-year-long test career, he played 62 test matches till now, where he took 291 wickets with a staggering average of 22.05. He has been one of the premier fast bowlers of the African lineup since his debut. He played most test matches against India(14), followed by England(12) and Australia(10). Rabada took most of his wickets(66) against England, followed by India(55) and Australia(49). He also has a very decent bowling average against India(22.6).
8. Josh Hazlewood – 273
Josh Hazelwood is an eminent member of the Aussie bowling lineup alongside Starc and Cummins. He has also a very promising test career, where he played 70 test matches in his 10-year-long career(2014-24). Hazz took 273 wickets in his test career with an average of 24.82 and 12 five-wicket hauls. In his career, he played most of the matches against England(18), followed by India(15) and Pakistan(9). His bowling career is well balanced between home and away conditions, where out of 273 wickets he took 111 wickets playing in away venues.
9. Kemar Roach – 270
Kemar Roach has been a bowling spearhead of the West Indies for a very long time. Roach made his test debut in 2009 against Bangladesh and played 81 test matches so far in his career. He took 270 test wickets in his career with a decent average of 27.74 and a 53.5 career strike rate with the ball. Roac has also had a very injury-prone career where he missed many test matches. He played most test matches against England(16) and took 61 wickets with a 27.83 average and 54.9 strike rate.
10. Pat Cummins – 269
Cummins, the Australian Skipper is now the leader of the Aussie pace attack. He along with Starc and Hazlewood is a threat to any batting lineup around the globe. He played 62 matches in his career where he led the team in 28 matches. Cummins took 269 wickets so far in his career with a decent 22.53 average and 46.8 strike rate. In his test career, he took 12 five-wicket hauls and 2 ten-wicket hauls. As a captain, he took 105 wickets in 28 matches whereas he took 164 wickets as non captain in 34 test matches. He played most of the matches in his career against England(19) and took 91 wickets with a 24.1 average and 45.7 strike rate.
This is the well-compelled list of the top 10 most test wickets among active players. Hope you all enjoy this list and for more such interesting content, please follow Sports Trends Insights.