3 bowlers with most bowled dismissals in Test cricket

Test cricket is a game of patience, both for batsmen and bowlers. While a batsman waits for a bad ball to punish, a bowler keeps bowling a disciplined line and length to set up a batsman. Nothing comes easy in Test cricket, and that is what makes the traditional form of the game the most important one.

Getting a batsman bowled, seeing his stumps rattled is the most pleasing sight for a bowler, be it any format of the game. In Tests, the percentage of wickets bowled is comparatively lesser than caught behinds and LBWs.

Hence, on that note, we look at the top 3 bowlers with most bowled dismissals in Test cricket.

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#3 Shane Warne

The man who could turn the ball on ice

The first man to reach 700 Test wickets and the man with most test runs without a hundred, Shane Warne revived the art of leg spin, coming from a land known for producing legendary fast bowlers.

Booming into fame with a dream year in 1993 where he picked 72 wickets, Warne stands third in the list of most bowled dismissals in Tests with 115 dismissals. The percentage of bowled dismissals is 16.24, which is nearly one out of every six wickets he took.

Rated among the 5 greatest cricketers in the 20th century, Warne's best days were yet to come, as he picked a record 96 wickets in 2004 after returning from a one year suspension. He finished with 708 wickets, the highest at the time he retired but was surpassed by Muralitharan later.

His ability to turn the ball on the driest and flattest of wickets seemed to defy the laws of physics. From the 6th stump line, Warne was able to turn it and knock the batter's off stump. Well, he's the one with the 'ball of the century', of course.

#2 James Anderson

James Anderson is by far the best bowler from the home of cricket

The master of swing bowling, who surpassed Glenn McGrath in 2018 to become the pacer with most Test wickets, will go down as one of the finest swing bowlers from English soil.

Currently standing third in the list of wicket takers in Test cricket with 565 wickets at an average of 26.98, James (Jimmy) Anderson has been highly instrumental in three victorious Ashes campaigns for England.

He was also the first English bowler to reach 500 Test wickets. Anderson stands second in the list of most bowled dismissals in Tests with 117 wickets, which is nearly one out of every five wickets of his career.

His ability to hit the deck hard, tie the batsman to a certain line and then swing it the other way has flummoxed many over the years and down the line, he will arguably go down as the best fast bowler to have ever played the gentleman's game.

#1 Muttiah Muralitharan

A true artist with the cricket ball

The wizard from the island nation, the man with the most international wickets, both in Tests as well as ODIs, Muttiah Muralitharan was nearly unplayable at times.

One of the greatest to ever spin the ball, he came into limelight in 1992-93 when he fixed legendary Allan Border. Despite his action getting into a lot of controversies, 'Murali', with his wide-eyed smile rivaled Shane Warne as the greatest spinner of his era.

Averaging less than 30 in every nation except India and Australia, Murali finished with a record 800 Test wickets at an average of 22.73. Like most other bowling records, Muralitharan tops this list as well, with 167 bowled dismissals, which is 20.88% of his Test wickets.

The next in the list are former England greats Fred Trueman (103), Brian Statham (102) and the deadly duo from Pakistan Wasim Akram (102) and Waqar Younus (102).

Among the current lot, Anderson is followed by Dale Steyn (90), Stuart Broad (74) and R Ashwin (74).