Australia’s Charlie Turner is the fastest to 50 Test wickets. The medium pacer got there in his sixth Test, against England at Old Trafford in 1888, and nobody has matched it in the 138 years since.
Three bowlers have done it in seven Tests: England’s Tom Richardson in 1896, South Africa’s Vernon Philander in 2012 and Sri Lanka’s Prabath Jayasuriya in 2023. Jayasuriya’s 50th wicket, against Ireland at Galle, also made him the fastest spinner to the mark, taking the record from West Indies’ Alf Valentine, who had needed eight Tests in 1951. Figures are from ESPNcricinfo Statsguru, to 20 October 2026, counted from each bowler’s match-by-match record.
Fastest to 50 Test wickets
| Bowler | Team | Tests | Against | Venue | Match (start date) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlie Turner | Australia | 6 | England | Manchester | 30 Aug 1888 |
| Tom Richardson | England | 7 | Australia | Lord’s | 22 Jun 1896 |
| Vernon Philander | South Africa | 7 | New Zealand | Wellington | 23 Mar 2012 |
| Prabath Jayasuriya | Sri Lanka | 7 | Ireland | Galle | 24 Apr 2023 |
| Fred Spofforth | Australia | 8 | England | Sydney | 17 Feb 1883 |
| Alf Valentine | West Indies | 8 | Australia | Melbourne | 31 Dec 1951 |
| Rodney Hogg | Australia | 8 | Pakistan | Perth | 24 Mar 1979 |
| Terry Alderman | Australia | 8 | Pakistan | Brisbane | 27 Nov 1981 |
These are all the bowlers to reach 50 wickets in eight Tests or fewer. Those who needed nine include England’s Bobby Peel and Sydney Barnes, JJ Ferris (who played for both Australia and England), and Australia’s Arthur Mailey and Stuart MacGill.
Charlie Turner: 50 wickets in six Tests
Turner’s 50th wicket came at Old Trafford in August 1888, in his sixth Test, 19 months after his debut at Sydney. He broke the record of his Australian team-mate Fred Spofforth, who had needed eight Tests and reached 50 against England at Sydney in February 1883. Turner finished with 101 wickets from 17 Tests.
The seven-Test bowlers
Tom Richardson reached 50 against Australia at Lord’s in June 1896. More than a century later, Vernon Philander matched him in a burst that began with his debut in November 2011 and reached 50 wickets against New Zealand at Wellington in March 2012. Prabath Jayasuriya became the third, and the first spinner, in April 2023, less than ten months after his debut.
Can anyone catch them?
Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan has 45 wickets from six Tests. Five more in his next Test would put him level with Richardson, Philander and Jayasuriya on seven; Turner’s six is already beyond him.
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Featured photo: Christiaan Kotze / AFP