When it comes to fast bowling in Test cricket, England have produced a lot – the reason why you will find it hard to spot more than two spinners in the top ten wicket-takers list for England in the longer format.
The modern-day pace duo of James Anderson-Stuart Broad tops the bowlers’ list for picking the most wickets for England in Tests.
These two are also the only entrants in the top ten list of overall wicket-takers in international cricket across formats.
Below is the table for England’s top ten wicket-takers in Tests.
Most Wickets for England in Test Cricket
| PLAYER | MATCHES | INNS | WKTS | BBI | BBM | AVG | ECON | SR | 5/10 WKT HAULS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Anderson | 188 | 350 | 704 | 7/42 | 11/71 | 26.45 | 2.79 | 56.87 | 32/3 |
| Stuart Broad | 167 | 309 | 604 | 8/15 | 11/121 | 27.68 | 2.97 | 55.79 | 20/3 |
| Ian Botham | 102 | 168 | 383 | 8/34 | 13/106 | 28.4 | 2.99 | 56.95 | 27/4 |
| Bob Willis | 90 | 165 | 325 | 8/43 | 9/92 | 25.2 | 2.83 | 53.4 | 16/0 |
| Fred Trueman | 67 | 127 | 307 | 8/31 | 12/119 | 21.57 | 2.61 | 49.43 | 17/3 |
| Derek Underwood | 86 | 151 | 297 | 8/51 | 13/71 | 25.83 | 2.1 | 73.6 | 17/6 |
| Graeme Swann | 60 | 109 | 255 | 6/65 | 10/132 | 29.96 | 2.98 | 60.19 | 17/3 |
| Brian Statham | 70 | 129 | 252 | 7/39 | 11/97 | 24.84 | 2.33 | 63.71 | 9/1 |
| Matthew Hoggard | 67 | 122 | 248 | 7/61 | 12/205 | 30.5 | 3.26 | 56.08 | 7/1 |
| Alec Bedser | 51 | 92 | 236 | 7/44 | 14/99 | 24.89 | 2.21 | 67.44 | 15/5 |
Key Insights
Anderson is the first England bowler to achieve the milestones of 500 and 600 wickets in Test cricket. He is also the first fast bowler to pick 600 wickets in the format.
The Burnley-based swing bowler has also taken the most five-wicket hauls (32) among the English bowlers, whereas 1966-debuted Derek Underwood has picked the most ten-wicket hauls (6) in Test matches.
Jim Laker, the first bowler in the history of Test cricket to pick ten wickets in an innings and the holder of the best-ever bowling figures in a Test innings and match (19/90), picked 193 wickets in 46 Test matches.
Returning to the AB of English bowling, the Anderson-Broad duo is among the only three bowlers in Test history to bowl more than 30000 deliveries in the format, the other being West Indies’ Courtney Walsh.
Read Next | ODI Stats: Most 100 Partnerships by Opening Pairs
