Fastest To 300 Wickets In Test Cricket
Table of content:
A wicket-taking bowler is always crucial to a team's success in any cricket format. The first player to accomplish the incredible feat of bagging over 100 wickets in test cricket was an Englishman named Fred Trueman. He achieved this incredible feat in 1964. Only a select number of the world's best pace bowlers or spinners have succeeded in reaching this milestone. This article discusses the quickest 10 bowlers to record the fastest 300 wickets in test matches.
GetMega is an amazing platform that lets you play Hold'em Poker with friends & family with real money. Sounds fun, isn't it? Download the GetMega Hold 'em Poker now!
The fastest 300 wickets in test matches.
1. R Ashwin
The fastest cricketer to bag 300 test wickets is Ravi Ashwin of India. It took him just 54 matches to accomplish this milestone. Dennis Lillee of Australia follows him in the standings. The second Indian spinner to record more than 300 wickets in test matches at home, Ashwin is now ranked sixth in the list of overall best bowlers in the world. In addition to this, Ashwin has now taken the most test wickets in India vs. New Zealand games. He surpassed Sir Richard Headley to accomplish this great feat as he helped India defeat New Zealand by a record-breaking 372 runs at the Wankhede Stadium in 2021.
2. Dennis Lillee
Second on the list of fastest to 300 wickets in tests is former Australian pace bowler Dennis Lillee, who is renowned for his aggressive, quick bowling. He took 300 test wickets in the second-fastest time. On November 27, 1981, at Brisbane, he recorded his 300th test wicket in a match against Pakistan. He achieved this feat in 56 test matches and recorded 300 wickets. Lillee experienced numerous injuries in his first fast bowling phase, but he overcame them effectively and improved his fitness. In total, he played in 70 test matches, taking 355 wickets with an incredible 23 five-wicket hauls, before hanging up his international jersey in 1984.
3. Muttiah Muralitharan
Former Sri Lankan off-spinner Deshabandu Muttiah Muralitharan played for the Lankans from 1992 to 2010. He comes third on the list of the fastest 300 wickets in test cricket. In the first test match between South Africa and England in Durban in 2000, he recorded his 300th wicket when he got Shaun Pollock to be caught by Dilshan at 11 runs.
He had to deal with a lot of controversy around his bowling motion, but he improved it and went on to become one of the best test bowlers. Additionally, he took 22 ten-wicket hauls and 67 five-wicket hauls.
In his final match against India in Galle in 2010, Muralitharan, who still holds the record for the highest test wickets at 800, became the first one in cricketing history to reach this milestone.
4. Dale Steyn
Dale Steyn comes fourth on the list of fastest 300 test wicket-takers. He bowled Doug Bracewell with a brilliantly pitched outswinger, evoking the strikes that struck out Michael Vaughan and others, to become the 19th bowler overall to reach 300 wickets and the fourth South African bowler to do so.
On January 2, 2013, he achieved this feat by taking his 300th test wicket. It was Steyn's 61st test match. In 61 games, Dale Steyn took 300 wickets, joining Richard Hadlee of New Zealand and Malcolm Marshall of the West Indies. Steyn, who was ranked above Hadlee and Marshall on the list, accomplished this milestone in 8 years, 16 days.
5. Malcolm Marshall
Marshall ranks number 5 on the list of quickest to 300 test wickets. He mostly bowled fast, occasionally changing his speed to medium,-pace, and is recognized as being one of the best and most skilled fast bowlers in test cricket's current era.
On December 24, 1988, while playing his 61st test match against Australia in Melbourne, he claimed his 300th test wicket. He got a good 376 test wickets at a scintillating average of 20.94 in 81 test matches. In his brief career, he took five-wicket incredible 22 times and 4 ten-wicket hauls.
6. Richard Hadlee
On the first day of the test between Australia and New Zealand at the Basin Reserve on February 21, 1986, Richard Hadlee effectively appealed for a leg-before-wicket, and Allan Border had to go back to the pavilion. Border was Hadlee's 300th hunt. And thus, he became one of the fastest to reach 300 test wickets. While that game was a tie, New Zealand prevailed 1-0 in the series. At that time, Richard Hadlee was at the pinnacle of his abilities and solidifying his position as one of the all-time greatest bowlers and New Zealand's most illustrious test cricketers. Hadlee was the descendant of Walter Hadlee, a previous New Zealand captain.
7. Shane Warne
The legendary Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne comes in the list of the fastest to take 300 wickets in tests at 7th place who recorded 300 test wickets in mere 63 test games. Despite having good results against all teams, Warne preferred bowling against South Africa and England. Warne did manage to turn a handful of their batsmen into bunnies; 325 of his incredible 708 test victories were over opponents from these two nations. Muttiah Muralitharan currently has the title for the highest wickets taken in test cricket. However, Warne was the very first to surpass the 600 and 700 wicket thresholds in that format. Warne still has the title for taking the highest number of wickets by any bowler in the Ashes with 195 from 36 test matches. He also holds the record for taking 96 wickets overall from 15 games.
8. Allan Donald
In a game versus New Zealand in Bloemfontein, South African pace bowler Allan Donald, said to be one of the finest pacers in the history of the sport, achieved the feat of becoming the very first South African to reach 300 wickets in the game's longest format. In the list of fastest 300 wickets in tests, he takes the 8th spot. This accomplishment was made by Donald in his 63rd game. In total, he has taken 330 wickets at a good average of 22.25 in 72 test games throughout his career.
He is regarded as one of the most prolific pace bowlers for the South Africa international cricket team. He is frequently referred to as "White Lightning" because of his furious lightning-quick bowling. Surprisingly, even today, in test cricket, only three bowlers have taken more wickets at a higher average than Donald.
9. Glenn McGrath
Former international player Glenn McGrath is the third Australian bowler to bag 300 test wickets. He consistently bowled with the right length and accuracy, and on December 1, 2000, in Perth during the second test, he claimed this feat against the West Indies. To do this, he had to play 64 test games. In the list of the fastest 300 wickets in tests, he takes the 9th spot. Throughout his career, he participated in 124 test matches and claimed 563 wickets. In January 2013, he was accepted into the popular ICC Hall of Fame. McGrath holds the title for the highest wickets in the cricket world cups with 71 wickets and has bagged the seventh-most one-day wickets (381).
10. Waqar Younis
On June 14, 2000, in his 65th test game versus Sri Lanka in Colombo, Pakistan's pace bowler Waqar Younis reached the milestone of 300 test wickets. In test cricket, the pacer wrote his name in history by becoming the third Pakistani player to accomplish this milestone. He got 373 wickets in 87 test matches, which he played in all before leaving the international format. Younis takes the 10th spot on the list of fastest 300 wickets in tests.
GetMega Rummy is an amazing platform that lets you play rummy with friends & family with real money. Sounds fun, isn't it? Download the GetMega rummy app now!
