Successful left-arm bowlers are a rare breed in cricket. The x-factor they bring into the team’s composition is always a welcoming one irrespective of the format. Rangana Herath of Sri Lanka, with 433 wickets, currently tops the list of the highest wicket-takers in Tests among the left-handed bowlers. That makes, no left-handed bowlers part of the elite list of 500 Test wickets.
Legendary names like Wasim Akram, Daniel Vettori, Chaminda Vaas, Mitchell Johnson, and Zaheer Khan are the other left-handed bowlers who crossed 300 Test wickets.
Provided in the table below is the list of top-10 wicket-takers among left-handed bowlers in Test cricket:
| BOWLERS | MATCHES | INNINGS | WICKETS | AVERAGE | ECONOMY | STRIKE RATE | BEST BOWLING (inns) | 5W/10W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rangana Herath (SL) | 93 | 170 | 433 | 28.07 | 2.80 | 60.0 | 9/127 | 34/9 |
| Wasim Akram (PAK) | 104 | 181 | 414 | 23.62 | 2.59 | 54.6 | 7/119 | 25/5 |
| Daniel Vettori (NZ) | 113 | 187 | 362 | 34.36 | 2.59 | 79.5 | 7/87 | 20/3 |
| Chaminda Vaas (SL) | 111 | 194 | 355 | 29.58 | 2.68 | 66.0 | 7/71 | 12/2 |
| Mitchell Johnson (AUS) | 73 | 140 | 313 | 28.40 | 3.33 | 51.1 | 8/61 | 12/3 |
| Zaheer Khan (IND) | 92 | 165 | 311 | 32.94 | 3.27 | 60.4 | 7/87 | 11/1 |
| Derek Underwood (ENG) | 86 | 151 | 297 | 25.83 | 2.10 | 73.6 | 8/51 | 17/6 |
| Trent Boult (NZ) | 71 | 135 | 278 | 28.17 | 2.98 | 56.5 | 6/30 | 8/1 |
| Bishan Bedi (IND) | 67 | 118 | 266 | 28.71 | 2.14 | 80.3 | 7/98 | 14/1 |
| Mitchell Starc (AUS) | 61 | 117 | 255 | 27.57 | 3.35 | 49.3 | 6/50 | 13/2 |
Stats Insights
Among the left-arm pacers, Wasim Akram leads the list with 414 Test wickets.
Here are the top-five left-arm pacers with most Test wickets:
- Wasim Akram (PAK) – 414
- Chaminda Vaas (SL) – 355
- Mitchell Johnson (AUS) – 313
- Zaheer Khan (IND) – 311
- Trent Boult (NZ) – 281
Among the left-arm spinners, Rangana Herath leads the list with 433 Test wickets.
Here are the top-five left-arm spinners with most Test wickets:
- Rangana herath (SL) – 433
- Daniel Vettori (NZ) – 362
- Derek Underwood (ENG) – 297
- Bishan Bedi (IND) – 266
- Garry Sobers (WI) – 235
Among the current list of bowlers, Trent Boult of NZ tops the list of highest Test wickets by left-handed bowlers.
Here are the top 10 left-handed bowlers with most wickets in Test:
- Trent Boult (NZ) – 281
- Neil Wagner (NZ) – 219
- Ravindra Jadeja (IND) – 216
- Shakib Al Hasan (BAN) – 210
- Taijul Islam (BAN) – 114
Mohammad Amir of Pakistan, who recently announced his retirement ended his long-format career with 119 Test scalps.
