Ranked by our ratings

Greatest Test Fast Bowlers

The top 50 fast bowlers from the 582 Test players in the Beat My 11 database, ranked by our ratings. The best 10 have a short profile each, then the table runs to No. 50.

Fast bowlers are rated on bowling only (bowling average, wickets per bowler-match, five-wicket-haul rate, ten-wicket-match rate).

Career Test totals from the Beat My 11 database, as of 22 October 2026.

The best 10, and why

1 Malcolm Marshall West Indies

Marshall was not tall for a fast bowler, but he was the most skilled of a famous West Indian generation. He took 376 wickets at 20.9 in 81 Tests, with 22 five-wicket hauls, an average that is among the lowest for any bowler with 300 or more wickets. He could swing the ball both ways at real pace, and he did it on pitches in every country. At Headingley in 1984 he came out to bat with a broken thumb, using one hand, and then took 7 for 53 in the second innings. He was also a useful lower-order batter. He died of cancer in 1999 at the age of 41. He is first among fast bowlers because his average is the lowest on the list for such a large number of wickets, and because he was equally effective at home and away.

2 Dale Steyn South Africa

Steyn was the fastest and most complete fast bowler of his era. He took 439 wickets at 22.9 in 93 Tests, with 26 five-wicket hauls, and his strike rate of 42.3 balls per wicket is the best of any bowler with over 400 Test wickets. He spent 2,343 days as the No. 1 ranked Test bowler, the most in history. He could swing the ball at pace both ways and bounce it hard from a good length, and he did it in India, in Australia and in England. He helped South Africa to the top of the Test rankings in 2012, when they beat England away. He was injured often late in his career, but still took wickets when he came back. He is second among fast bowlers because his strike rate is outstanding and he took his wickets in many countries.

3 Glenn McGrath Australia

McGrath was the model of control for a fast bowler. He took 563 wickets at 21.6 in 124 Tests, with 29 five-wicket hauls, one of the biggest totals ever by a fast bowler. He wasn't especially quick but he hit the same spot over after over, with a bit of seam and bounce, and few batters could score off him. He took 8 for 24 against Pakistan at Perth in 2004. He bowled in an Australian attack with Warne, Gillespie and Lee that won three consecutive World Cups and dominated Test cricket through the 2000s. He retired in 2007 after the World Cup. He is third among fast bowlers because his average is among the best, his total is big and the length of his career was exceptional for a quick.

4 Dennis Lillee Australia

Lillee was the great fast bowler of the 1970s. He took 355 wickets at 23.9 in 70 Tests with 23 five-wicket hauls, and when he retired in 1984 his total of 355 was a world record. At the Centenary Test in Melbourne in 1977, he took 11 for 165 and Australia won by 45 runs, the same margin as in the first-ever Test 100 years before. Together with Jeff Thomson, he formed one of the most feared fast-bowling pairs in history. He came back from a serious back injury that nearly ended his career and rebuilt his action into a more controlled one. He is fourth among fast bowlers because of the peak of his performances and because he did it at an average of under 24.

5 Allan Donald South Africa

Donald, known as "White Lightning", was South Africa's first great fast bowler after the end of their isolation. He took 330 wickets at 22.2 in 72 Tests, with 20 five-wicket hauls, quick and accurate with a whippy, late-swinging action. In 1998 at Trent Bridge, his duel with Michael Atherton, in which Donald bowled a famous over to him with the Test in the balance, is regarded as one of the great passages of fast-bowling in Test cricket. He was a key part of the South African side of the 1990s and later became a bowling coach to other countries. He is fifth among fast bowlers because his average is among the best, in a career that ran from 1992 to 2002.

6 Kagiso Rabada South Africa

Rabada is South Africa's leading fast bowler of the current generation. He has taken 340 wickets at 22 in 73 Tests, with 17 five-wicket hauls. He is quick, with a high arm and a fast arm, and bowls with fire and skill on any pitch. In the 2025 World Test Championship final at Lord's he took 9 wickets against Australia, including 5 for 51 in the first innings, as South Africa won their first ICC trophy since 1998. He has taken wickets in all conditions, including in Australia and England, and his record at home is excellent. He is sixth among fast bowlers because his average and strike rate are already comparable with the all-time greats, and he is still playing.

7 Curtly Ambrose West Indies

Ambrose was a very tall West Indian fast bowler who got steep bounce from a good length, and gave batters nothing to hit. He took 405 wickets at 21 in 98 Tests, with 22 five-wicket hauls. In 1993 at Perth, he took 7 wickets for 1 run in 32 balls to bowl Australia out and win the Test, one of the great spells in history. He was a quiet man who rarely spoke to the media, but on the field he could dominate a game. He was part of the West Indian attack that did not lose a Test series for 15 years from 1980 to 1995. He is seventh among fast bowlers because his average is among the best and his best spells have few equals.

8 James Anderson England

Anderson is the leading fast-bowling wicket-taker in the history of Test cricket. He took 704 wickets at 26.5 in 188 Tests, with 32 five-wicket hauls, in a career that began in 2003 and ended in July 2024 at Lord's against West Indies. He became the first fast bowler to take 700 Test wickets, in March 2024. His swing bowling, especially with the Dukes ball in England, was close to unplayable in the right conditions, and he learned to take wickets overseas too. He played until the age of 41, an extraordinary length of time for a fast bowler. He is eighth among fast bowlers because his average is higher than the seven above him, but no fast bowler has taken more wickets or played so many Tests.

9 Waqar Younis Pakistan

Waqar was a fast bowler who sent in full-length reverse-swinging yorkers at high pace. He took 373 wickets at 23.6 in 87 Tests, with 22 five-wicket hauls, and his strike rate of 43.4 balls per wicket is among the very best of any bowler with 300 or more Test wickets. He and Wasim Akram were the best bowling pair of the 1990s, and between them they took reverse swing to the world. He took wickets at an astonishing rate in his first few years, and later after injuries he developed more variety. He later coached Pakistan. He is ninth among fast bowlers because his strike rate is among the very best, and his bowling won a lot of matches for Pakistan.

10 Wasim Akram Pakistan

Wasim was a left-arm fast bowler who could swing the ball both ways at pace, with a late wrist action that hid the delivery until the last moment. He took 414 wickets at 23.6 in 104 Tests, with 25 five-wicket hauls. He is the only bowler to take two Test hat-tricks in consecutive matches, both against Sri Lanka in 1999. As a lower-order batter he scored 2,898 runs at 22.6, including 257 not out against Zimbabwe at Sheikhupura in 1996, the highest score by a number eight batter in Test cricket. He won the 1992 World Cup with Pakistan. Many bowlers and batters regard him as the best left-arm fast bowler in history. He is tenth among fast bowlers on our list because of the strong records ahead of him, not because of any shortfall in his skill.

Top 50 ranking

#	Player	Nation	Played in	Tests	Wkts	Bowl avg	5W	10W
1	Malcolm Marshall	West Indies	Legends, 1980s	81	376	20.9	22	4
2	Dale Steyn	South Africa	Legends, 2000s, 2010s	93	439	22.9	26	5
3	Glenn McGrath	Australia	Legends, 1990s, 2000s	124	563	21.6	29	3
4	Dennis Lillee	Australia	Legends, 1970s, 1980s	70	355	23.9	23	7
5	Allan Donald	South Africa	1990s	72	330	22.2	20	3
6	Kagiso Rabada	South Africa	2010s, 2020s	73	340	22	17	4
7	Curtly Ambrose	West Indies	Legends, 1990s	98	405	21	22	3
8	James Anderson	England	2000s, 2010s, 2020s	188	704	26.5	32	3
9	Waqar Younis	Pakistan	Legends, 1990s, 2000s	87	373	23.6	22	5
10	Wasim Akram	Pakistan	Legends, 1980s, 1990s	104	414	23.6	25	5
11	Jasprit Bumrah	India	2020s	52	234	19.8	16	0
12	Pat Cummins	Australia	2010s, 2020s	74	322	21.9	14	2
13	Mitchell Starc	Australia	2010s, 2020s	107	445	26.1	19	4
14	Courtney Walsh	West Indies	1980s, 1990s	132	519	24.4	22	3
15	Stuart Broad	England	2010s, 2020s	167	604	27.7	20	3
16	Michael Holding	West Indies	1970s, 1980s	60	249	23.7	13	2
17	Shaun Pollock	South Africa	1990s, 2000s	108	421	23.12	16	1
18	Andy Roberts	West Indies	1970s, 1980s	47	202	25.6	11	2
19	Sydney Barnes	England	Legends	27	189	16.4	24	7
20	Makhaya Ntini	South Africa	2000s	101	390	28.8	18	4
21	Joel Garner	West Indies	Legends, 1970s, 1980s	58	259	21	7	0
22	Josh Hazlewood	Australia	2010s, 2020s	78	303	24	14	0
23	Mitchell Johnson	Australia	2010s	73	313	28.41	12	3
24	Craig McDermott	Australia	1980s, 1990s	71	291	28.63	14	2
25	Vernon Philander	South Africa	2010s	64	224	22.3	13	2
26	Bob Willis	England	1970s, 1980s	90	325	25.2	16	0
27	Shoaib Akhtar	Pakistan	2000s	46	178	25.7	12	2
28	Trent Boult	New Zealand	2010s	78	317	27.5	10	1
29	John Snow	England	1970s	49	202	26.7	8	1
30	Angus Fraser	England	1990s	46	177	27.3	13	2
31	Terry Alderman	Australia	1980s	41	170	27.1	14	1
32	Neil Wagner	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	64	260	27.6	9	0
33	Tim Southee	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	107	391	30.3	15	1
34	Kemar Roach	West Indies	2010s, 2020s	91	304	26.9	12	1
35	Matt Henry	New Zealand	2010s, 2020s	35	152	26.1	8	1
36	Andrew Caddick	England	1990s, 2000s	62	234	29.91	13	1
37	Mohammad Abbas	Pakistan	2020s	33	131	22.7	8	1
38	Jason Gillespie	Australia	1990s, 2000s	71	259	26.1	8	0
39	Darren Gough	England	1990s	58	229	28.4	9	0
40	Merv Hughes	Australia	1980s, 1990s	53	212	28.4	7	1
41	Jeff Thomson	Australia	1970s, 1980s	51	200	28	8	0
42	Morne Morkel	South Africa	2000s, 2010s	86	309	27.7	8	0
43	Chaminda Vaas	Sri Lanka	1990s, 2000s	111	355	29.6	12	2
44	Brett Lee	Australia	2000s	76	310	30.8	10	0
45	Mohammad Asif	Pakistan	2000s	23	106	24.4	7	1
46	Geoff Lawson	Australia	1980s	46	180	30.6	11	2
47	Ian Bishop	West Indies	1990s	43	161	24.3	6	0
48	Kyle Jamieson	New Zealand	2020s	21	90	20.2	6	1
49	Ollie Robinson	England	2020s	24	104	19.3	5	0
50	Bruce Reid	Australia	1980s	27	113	24.6	5	2

What stands out

The top 10 come from 5 nations. South Africa has the most (3).
7 of the top 10 played in the Legends era, more than in any other.
James Anderson played the most Tests of the top 10 (188); Dennis Lillee the fewest (70).
Of fast bowlers with 20+ Tests, the lowest bowling average is Sydney Barnes's 16.4. He is No. 19 on this list.
James Anderson took the most wickets (704). He is No. 8.

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