Most wickets in WTC history: Mitchell Starc leads on 234

Mitchell Starc has the most wickets in World Test Championship history, 234. Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon are tied on 228, and four of the top eight are Indians – Ravichandran Ashwin leading them on 195.

Mitchell Starc has taken more wickets in the World Test Championship than anyone: 234 in 56 matches. He was fourth on this list two years ago and has since gone past all three men above him.

Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon are tied on 228, Cummins having played three matches fewer, and four of the top eight are Indians — Ravichandran Ashwin still leading them on 195.

Most wickets in WTC history

The ten leading wicket-takers across all World Test Championship cycles, from 2019 to date. Complete to 10 September 2026, with the third England v Pakistan Test at Birmingham in progress. Source: ESPNcricinfo.

Rank	Bowler	Team	Span	Matches	Wickets	Average	Best
1	Mitchell Starc	Australia	2019-2026	56	234	24.25	7/58
2	Pat Cummins	Australia	2019-2026	54	228	21.86	6/28
2	Nathan Lyon	Australia	2019-2026	57	228	27.14	8/64
4	Ravichandran Ashwin	India	2019-2024	41	195	21.49	7/71
5	Jasprit Bumrah	India	2019-2025	42	185	19.23	6/27
6	Ravindra Jadeja	India	2019-2026	50	164	27.19	7/42
6	Kagiso Rabada	South Africa	2019-2025	36	164	22.31	6/46
8	Mohammed Siraj	India	2020-2026	47	143	29.55	6/15
9	Josh Hazlewood	Australia	2019-2026	34	139	20.28	6/89
10	Stuart Broad	England	2019-2023	33	134	24.09	6/31

Starc went from fourth to first

In September 2024 Starc had 147 WTC wickets and was fourth, 40 behind Lyon. He has taken 58 wickets at 16.98 in the 2025-27 cycle alone — the best average of anyone with 40 or more in it — and that is what moved him.

Australia hold the top three places on the all-time list.

Cummins and Lyon, level on 228

The two are separated by nothing at all on wickets and by a great deal on everything else. Cummins averages 21.86 to Lyon’s 27.14 and has needed three fewer matches; Lyon has bowled far more overs and has the better single return.

Cummins’ best figures, 6 for 28, came in the 2025 final at Lord’s — in a match Australia lost, with Kagiso Rabada taking 5 for 51 and Marco Jansen 5 for 49 for South Africa.

The Indians

Ravichandran Ashwin is India’s leading WTC wicket-taker with 195 at 21.49, a figure that will not move again — he retired from Test cricket in December 2024.

Behind him, Jasprit Bumrah’s 185 come at 19.23, and that is the best average of any bowler with 100 or more WTC wickets. Bumrah also has 13 five-wicket hauls, more than anyone else, with Ashwin next on 11.

Ravindra Jadeja is on 164 and Mohammed Siraj on 143, which puts four Indians in the top eight, more than any other country — Australia have three there and South Africa one.

The best bowling the WTC has seen

Ajaz Patel’s 10 for 119 against India at the Wankhede in December 2021 is the best innings return in World Test Championship history, and the only ten-wicket innings in it.

Only four bowlers have taken eight or more in a WTC innings at all: Patel, Nathan Lyon (8 for 64 at Indore in 2023), Noman Ali (8 for 46 at Multan in 2024) and Sajid Khan (8 for 42 at Mirpur in 2021). Patel’s 14 for 225 is also the best match return.

The three finals

2021, Southampton — New Zealand beat India by eight wickets. 2023, The Oval — Australia beat India by 209 runs. 2025, Lord’s — South Africa beat Australia by five wickets.

India reached the first two finals and lost both, and did not qualify in 2025. In the 2025-27 cycle the leading wicket-taker so far is England’s Josh Tongue with 62, ahead of Starc on 58.

Most wickets in WTC history: quick answers

Who has the most wickets in WTC history? Mitchell Starc, with 234.

Which Indian has the most? Ravichandran Ashwin, with 195.

Who has the best average? Jasprit Bumrah, 19.23, among bowlers with 100 wickets or more.

What are the best figures in a WTC innings? Ajaz Patel’s 10 for 119 against India in 2021.

Who has the most five-wicket hauls? Jasprit Bumrah, with 13.

See also our lists of the most runs in WTC history and the most hundreds in WTC history.

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Photo credit: Imago