Fastest to 100 Test Wickets for West Indies

Fastest to 100 Test Wickets for West Indies

Key Insights

Alf Valentine and Andy Roberts are the joint-fastest West Indies bowlers to take 100 wickets in Test cricket. Both bowlers needed 19 matches each to mint their 100th Test scalp. It will be interesting to find out where this feat stands among the global fastest bowlers ever to reach the 100 Test wickets mark.

Valentine was, in fact, the first Caribbean bowler to pick up 100 Test wickets. He achieved the feat on February 24, 1954, in the Georgetown Test against England.

Roberts, though, is the quickest between the two in terms of time taken. While Valentine took three years and 261 days after his debut to reach the mark, Roberts achieved it in two years and 138 days.

Valentine is also the quickest to 50 Test wickets among his fellow Caribbean players. He reached the milestone in his eighth Test match.

Carl Hooper stands on the other side of the spectrum. He took the longest to complete 100 Test wickets. The off-spinner needed 90 Tests and close to 14 years to attain the feat. Hooper is the only Caribbean bowler to take more than 50 Tests to reach 100 scalps.

Hooper is also the oldest bowler to pick up 100 Test wickets for the West Indies. He was 16 days short of turning 35 at the time of the achievement.

Valentine, on the other hand, is the youngest Caribbean bowler to reach the mark. He was 23 years and 303 days old.