Six hundred wickets in test cricket
Six hundred Test wickets is a great achievement and only five bowlers have reached this goal so far. In this article, we are going to take a closer look at their accomplishments and overall Test and ODI records to give you a glimpse of their greatness.
Our list includes three spinners and two fast bowler, England’s James Anderson and Stuart broad. They are the only active player on the list.
Broad achieved the feat in his 166th Test with the wicket of Travis Head in the 50th over of the first innings. Of his 600 scalps, 394 have come in England, while 206 have come from abroad. The 37-year-old is the fifth bowler after Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, Anil Kumble, and Anderson to record 600 Test wickets.He is an another active player on list.
1. Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) – 101 Tests
Muttiah Muralitharan’s Test career spanned from 1992 to 2010 and he played 133 Tests, bagging 800 wickets at a 22.72 average and a 55.0 strike rate with 67 five-fors and 22 10-wicket hauls. Muralitharan’s best figure in a Test innings were 9/51.
He also featured in 350 ODIs, snaring 534 scalps at a 23.08 average, an economy rate of 3.93 and a 35.2 strike rate with 10 five-fors. His top ODI figures were 7/30.
2.Anil Kumble(124 test) India
Anil Kumble is second on our list, with 124 Tests needed to reach 600 Test wickets. His Test career spanned from 1990 to 2008 and he starred in a total of 132 Tests, bagging 619 wickets at a 29.65 average and a 65.9 strike rate with 35 five-fors and 8 10-wicket game hauls. Kumble’s best figures in a Test innings were 10/74.
Kumble also featured in 271 ODIs, snaring 337 scalps at an average of 30.89, an economy rate of 4.30 and a 43.0 strike rate with 2 five-fors. His top ODI figures were 6/12.
3.Shane Warne(126 test) Australia
Shane Warne was the third-fastest to 600 Test wickets as it took him 126 matches. He played a total of 145 Tests from 1992 to 2007, claiming 708 scalps at a 25.41 average and a strike rate of 57.4 with 37 five-fors and 10 10-wicket game hauls. Warne’s best figures in a Test innings were 8/71.
Warne also starred in 194 ODIs, taking 293 wickets at an average of 25.73, a 4.25 economy rate and a strike rate of 36.3 with 1 five-for. His best ODI figures were 5/33.
4.James Anderson(156 test) England
James Anderson rounds out our list with 156 Tests needed to attain 600 Test scalps. He is still active in the cricketing arena and played his last Test against Pakistan in Southampton in August 2020. Anderson made his Test debut in 2003 and has so far featured in 156 matches, grabbing 600 wickets at a 26.79 average and a 56.2 strike rate with 29 five-fors and 3 10-wicket game hauls. Anderson’s best figures in a Test innings are 7/42.
Stuart Board(166 test) England
Broad achieved the feat in his 166th Test with the wicket of Travis Head in the 50th over of the first innings. Of his 600 scalps, 394 have come in England, while 206 have come from abroad. The 37-year-old is the fifth bowler after Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, Anil Kumble, and Anderson to record 600 Test wickets.He is an another active player on list.