Spinners With Most Test Wickets For Each Country
Published - 15 Apr 2020, 02:17 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:05 AM
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Spinners’ role has often stayed underrated in all forms of cricket, especially Tests. Apart from the sub-continent cricketing nations, the rest barely trust spinners to make the desired impact. Most teams use spinners to either hold an end or giving rest to the fast bowlers, reducing the chances of causing low-over rate. However, beyond these basic reasons, there are reasons to utilise the spin-bowlers.
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Apart from being able to bowl longer spells, when the rough gets created, they have a massive role to play. Also, not all batsmen fare well against spinners and tend to fall to the trap when served flighted deliveries. And even as most sides have nurtured fast bowlers more, spinners have cashed in on the chances too. For a handful of cricketing nations, spin bowlers have remained their highest wicket-takers by a mile.
On that note, we take a look at the highest wicket-takers among spinners for each Test team:
Ray Price (Zimbabwe) – 80 wickets
Ray Price was once Zimbabwe’s best spinner after Paul Strang. Having made his debut in 1999, he picked up seven wickets only in the second Test and indeed appeared as an excellent prospect for red-ball cricket. Price kept rising along the ranks by picking up consecutive five-wicket hauls, one against India in 2001-02 and a six-for against Australia in 2003.
The 43-year old wasn’t a big spinner of the ball. Instead, the left-arm spinner relied on deceiving the batsmen in the air, depending on the pitch to do the rest. He retired from international cricket in 2013, having represented Zimbabwe in 22 Tests, 102 ODIs, and 15 T20Is. In the longest version, Ray Price accumulated 80 scalps at 36.06.
Hugh Tayfield (South Africa) – 170 wickets
Hugh Tayfield was one of the first spinners, who gave birth to spin-bowling in South Africa. South Africa has always been one of those countries, where spinners aren’t nurtured as much as fast or seam bowlers. Even as the Wanderers in Johannesburg is well-known for it’s fast and bouncy nature, Tayfield owns the best figures in there of 9 for 113. The Natal-born cricketer’s 170 wickets came at 25.91.
The late cricketer could bowl long spells without wavering. Even though Tayfield is not considered in the same league as that of Jim Laker or Lance Gibbs, accuracy was his weapon. Proteas’ most successful spinner has laid the path for candidates of today’s era like Keshav Maharaj to change the outlook on spinners in the nation.
Shakib Al-Hasan (Bangladesh) – 210 wickets
Shakib Al-Hasan is undoubtedly one of the biggest names that emerged from the circles of Bangladeshi cricket. With 217 scalps in 56 Tests, not only he is their highest wicket-taker, but also amongst their highest run-getters in the Test arena. In 2015, the all-rounder became the first cricketer to be ranked as number one in all three formats of the game.
Shakib played an integral role in Bangladesh’s first and only Test win over Australia in 2017, having taken five wickets in both the innings. The veteran cricketer was also instrumental in their famous victory over England in 2016, bagging four scalps to trigger a collapse. In November 2014, the 33-year old joined Ian Botham and Imran Khan as the only ones to take ten wickets and 100 runs in the same match.
Danish Kaneria (Pakistan) – 261 wickets
Even though Danish Kaneria is the best spinner from Pakistan in terms of wickets, his reputation comes under question. Kaneria came under the spotlight for spot-fixing in English county cricket in 2012. Due to this, the ECB banned him for life. Kaneria could never play for Pakistan after 2012.
The leggie had a bit of a peculiar bowling action but he generated considerable bounce. The Karachi-born spinner also didn’t use googly as often and instead kept it to surprise the batsmen. As a matter of fact, he was effective away from home as well. The 39-year old’s 152 out of 261 wickets came away from home with best figures of 7/77. Unfortunately, continuous controversies, even his religion being that of a Hindu, kept interfering with his career.
Derek Underwood (England) – 297 wickets
Referred to as ‘deadly’, Derek Underwood is only one of the two spinners amongst England’s highest-wicket takers in top ten, the other being Graeme Swann. Underwood’s tally of 297 wickets from 86 Tests at 25.83 makes him the best English spinner thus far. The Kent spinner scripted one of the most dramatic wins for England at The Oval against Australia in 1968. It was a series-levelling victory for England, a rubber which the tourists seemed to have won it.
Australia stood triumphant in the first with the other three resulting in a draw. With rain lasting as much as destroying 75 minutes of the last four hours, the game headed for a draw. But it didn’t matter as the left-arm spinner ran through the opposition to seal a 226-run win over Australia to pull level. Along with Alan Connolly of Australia, Underwood received the bowler of the match award for snapping nine wickets, including seven in the second innings.
Lance Gibbs (West Indies) – 309
Among the likes of speedsters in Malcolm Marshall, Joel Garner, and Andy Roberts, Lance Gibbs meekly stood out as their frontline spinner. Gibbs was only the second cricketer and the first to cross 300 wickets. His 309 scalps in 79 games came at an unbelievable economy rate of 1.98 with 18 five-wicket hauls.
The off-spinner’s best 8/38 in an innings came against India in Barbados in 1962 with all the wickets coming in a 15-over spell, costing only six runs. Before that, he faced an axe after which Gibbs picked up three wickets in four deliveries against Australia in Sydney and a hattrick in Adelaide.
Daniel Vettori (New Zealand) – 361 wickets
With a nerdy geek look, which with the help of spectacles augmented it, Daniel Vettori is easily one of New Zealand’s most celebrated cricketers. Vettori made his debut at the age of 18, becoming the youngest Kiwi player to play a Test match. He is considered one of the best exponents of left-arm spin, possessing a tempting loopy delivery and an equally dangerous arm ball.
With 361 wickets in 113 Tests, the former captain is also their second-highest wicket-taker after Sir Richard Hadlee. The 41-year old could bat to a certain extent too, accumulating 4531 runs at 30.01. The Auckland-born is one of the eight players to score the double of 3000 runs and take 300 wickets.
Anil Kumble (India) – 619 wickets
Anil Kumble wasn’t a big spinner of the ball unlike Shane Warne, yet he collected an enormous 619 wickets in his 132-Test career. He was part of the Indian team that chalked up some famous overseas victories in venues like Rawalpindi, Adelaide, Nottingham, Jamaica, Johannesburg, and Wellington.
The leg-spinner relied more on quicker deliveries that was quicker through the air along with consistent line and length. One of Kumble’s best Test performances came against Pakistan in 1999 in Delhi when he snapped all ten wickets in an innings, ending with figures of 10/74. The Karnataka spinner became only the second bowler after Jim Laker to take all the scalps in an innings. His extraordinary bowling designed an improbable victory for India.
Shane Warne (Australia) – 708 wickets
Shane Warne went down as one of the greatest amongst the leg-spinners of all the generations. Not only did Warne possessed the ability to generate massive spin off the pitch, but he had the accuracy to back it up. After his debut in 1992, the Victorian produced what is known as the ‘ball of the century’ to Mike Gatting. It was a delivery that pitched well outside leg to disturb the off bail as the batsmen left the ball.
That was Warne’s one of the famous victims amongst his 708 from 145 Tests. The leg-spinner was also more than a handy batsman down the order as witnessed in the Ashes series of 2005. It was his best series with the bat in red-ball cricket, scoring 249 runs in five Tests with the best score of 90. Warne holds a distinct record of accumulating most number of runs without scoring a century. With more than 708 wickets, he not only tops the wicket-taking list for Australia but also stands second overall.
Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) – 800 wickets
Muttiah Muralitharan was the finest exponent of the off-spin, touching the territory of 800 Test wickets, leaving him nowhere close to any other. As much as Murali’s feats in both Tests and ODIs may remain unparalleled, the legality of his action has come under question in various instances. Even as he received clearance from ICC numerous times, the doubters refused to maintain silence.
In a Test career that spanned across 18 years and 133 matches, the Sri Lankan troubled stalwarts like Brian Lara and Rahul Dravid. Yet, Murali’s performances against Australia and India were significantly below par as compared to other teams. Against Australia, he averaged 75.42 and his average against the Asian counterpart stood at 45.45. The 47-year old ended his Test career with his 800th victim that came in the form of Pragyan Ojha in 2010.
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