Top 7 Test bowlers with most wickets in winning cause at home

Picking up wickets in Test cricket is a difficult art to master. With flat wickets, bigger bats and smaller boundaries, it is the batsmen who have continued to stamp their authority over bowlers across various formats of the game. Hence, the bowlers are under tremendous pressure to pick up wickets and help their sides to victories.

Several bowlers who have had great starts to their Test career have faded away, failing to endure the demands of the longest format of the game over a period of time. The bowlers who feature in this list have shown the necessary wicket-taking capabilities to establish themselves as a key member of their side for a very long time.

Now let us have a look at the bowlers who have contributed heavily to their sides' victories in home conditions.

Disclaimer: The stats and figures are accurate as on 3rd June 2018 including the second Test between England and Pakistan at Leeds.

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7. Stuart Broad- 180 wickets

Stuart Broad made his Test debut for England against Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club in 2007. With his natural ability to extract bounce from the surface and the seamer-friendly conditions in England enabled Broad to establish himself as one of the finest fast bowlers of his era.

Broad was a major contributor towards England's victories at home. England won 39 of the 66 Tests he played at home. During this period, he bowled 7467 deliveries, conceding 3529 runs and picked up 180 wickets at an average of 19.60 including 8 five-wicket hauls and two 10-wicket match hauls. He achieved his best bowling performance in Tests against Australia at Trent Bridge, where he bundled out their rivals for 60 in less than 100 minutes and finished with excellent figures of 8/15.

Recently, Broad became the second English bowler to pick up 400 wickets in Tests. With his appetite for success and his tremendous fitness levels, he is expected to add more wickets to this tally in the upcoming years.

6. Ravichandran Ashwin- 181 wickets

Ravichandran Ashwin is one of the mainstays of the Indian bowling attack in Test Cricket. Whenever India plays a Test at home, Ashwin is expected to pick up a five-wicket haul. Such is the impact that the Tamil Nadu born spinner has had on the team. Recently, he became the fastest to reach the milestone of 300 wickets in Tests, breaking Dennis Lillee's 36-year-old record.

India won 25 of the 35 Tests he played at home. During that period, he bowled 7857 deliveries, conceding 3437 runs and picked up 181 wickets at an average of 18.98 including 19 five-wicket hauls and 6 ten-wicket match hauls.

On the other hand, Ashwin has failed to replicate similar kind of performances outside Asia.

5. Anil Kumble-208 wickets

The most successful bowler for India in Test cricket, Anil Kumble outfoxed several top quality batsmen with his accurate bowling and subtle variations. By the end of his career, he finished as the third highest wicket-taker in Tests, behind Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan.

India won 28 of the 63 games he played at home. During that period, he bowled 9323 deliveries, conceding 3617 runs and picked up 208 wickets at an average of 17.38 including 16 five-wicket hauls and 5 ten-wicket match hauls.

4. James Anderson- 233 wickets

James Anderson is one of the top Test bowlers going around at the moment. He destroyed oppositions with his quality swing bowling which enabled him to pick up more than 500 wickets in the Test arena. Needless to say, James Anderson and Stuart Broad formed one of the deadliest bowling combinations in Tests.

England won 47 of the 78 Tests he played at home. During that period, he bowled 9513 deliveries, conceding 4373 runs and picked up 233 wickets at an average of 18.76 including 16 five-wicket hauls and 3 ten-wicket match hauls.

3. Glenn McGrath- 249 wickets

Glenn McGrath was one of the chief contributors for Australia's dominance in world cricket in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He represented Australia in 124 Tests and finished with 563 wickets at an average of 21.64 in a career spanning 14 years from 1993 to 2007.

Australia won 53 of the 66 matches he played at home. During that period, he bowled 12547 deliveries, conceding 5115 runs and picked up 249 wickets at an average of 20.54 including 9 five-wicket hauls and 2 ten-wicket match hauls.

2. Shane Warne- 250 wickets

The greatest leg-spinner to have ever played the game, Shane Warne extracted tremendous spin even on wickets which offered very little assistance to spinners. This made Warne a key member of the Australian side ever since he made his Test debut against India at the SCG in 1992.

Australia won 49 of the 54 matches he played at home. During that period, he bowled 13684 deliveries, conceding 5934 runs and picked up 250 wickets at an average of 23.73 including 12 five-wicket hauls and 3 ten-wicket match hauls.

Post-retirement, Warne has taken up the role of mentoring budding talents across several T20 franchise teams across the world.

1. Muttiah Muralitharan- 305 wickets

Muttiah Muralitharan was a seasoned match-winner for the island nation. He featured in 133 Tests for Sri Lanka in a career spanning 18 years from 1992 to 2010. At the end of his career, he finished as the leading wicket-taker in Tests and ODIs.

Sri Lanka won 37 of the 73 Tests he played at home. During that period, he bowled 12830 deliveries, conceding 4709 runs and picked up 305 wickets at an average of 15.43 including 30 five-wicket hauls and 13 ten-wicket match hauls.