3 bowlers quickest to 400 Test wickets
Reaching 400 Test wickets is a monumental achievement for any bowler - be it a spinner or a pacer. Thus, bowlers who have reached the milestone have already proved their mettle at the highest level.
For fast bowlers, dealing with injuries is always one of the main factors that directly has an impact on the longevity of their careers. Test cricket has seen many world class pacers, who have mastered the art of seam and swing and also maintained their fitness for a long period of time.
Similarly, for a spinner, there aren't always conditions where the pitch is turning square. But great spinners learn to improvise and find out new ways to outsmart all kinds of batsmen.
Thus, the 400 Test wickets club consists of some elite bowlers. What seperates them within themselves is the amount of time they took to reach the milestone. The lesser the time, the stronger has been the impact of their presence on world cricket.
3 Fastest bowlers to make it to the 400 Test wickets club
With Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin being ever so close to 400 Test wickets, let's have a look at the three fastest bowlers to have reached this landmark.
#3 Dale Steyn - (400 Test wickets in 80 Tests)
South African speedster Dale Steyn has been regarded by many as the best fast bowler of his generation. Steyn reached 400 Test wickets in his 80th Test against Bangladesh in Dhaka on 30th July 2015. Injuries marred the latter part of his career, but Steyn showed enough hunger to stage a strong comeback every single time.
Despite having fitness issues, he powered through compatriot Shaun Pollock's tally of 421 wickets to become the leading wicket-taker for his country in Tests. Steyn has also been one such fast bowler who has had success even in conditions not conducive to swing bowling.
He had a reputation of running through opposition batting line-ups with ease when he was at his best. When conventional swing was not on offer, Steyn generated irresistable reverse swing. He always seemed to have a way to get through the defence of a batsman.
Steyn played a huge role in helping Grame Smith's South African team to the summit of the ICC Test Rankings. He ended up with 439 wickets from 93 Tests, with 26 five-wicket hauls and 5 ten-wicket hauls.
Having taken retirement from Tests in August 2019, he still aspires to make one last effort to win silverware with the Proteas by being in their T20 World Cup plans.
#2 Richard Hadlee - (400 Test wickets in 80 Tests)
Richard Hadlee was no mug with the bat during his 86-match long Test career. He scored 3124 runs and was considered as one of the finest all-rounders in world cricket alongside Sir Ian Botham, Kapil Dev and Imran Khan.
But it was the bowling that made him even more lethal. The Kiwi, during his time, held the record for being the fastest bowler to reach 400 Test wickets, managing the same in 80 Tests. He achieved the milestone against India at Christchurch on 2nd February, 1990.
The New Zealand legend went on to muster 431 wickets in his Test career, becoming the highest wicket-taker at that point. Hadlee also had a brilliant bowling average of 22.29, with 36 five-wicket hauls and 9 ten-wicket hauls.
He was considered by many great batsmen of his time as one of the most difficult bowlers that they faced. Hadlee still arguably remains the best all-rounder produced by the Kiwis in the longest format of the game.
#1 Muttiah Muralitharan - (400 Test wickets in 72 Tests)
Probably the best bowler to ever play Test cricket, it his perhaps fitting that Muttiah Muralitharan makes it to the top of this list. The legendary Sri Lankan spinner reached 400 Test wickets in only his 72nd Test against Zimbabwe at Galle on January 12th 2002. Little did he know that this was just the halfway mark.
Muralitharan went on to play 133 Tests, picking up a mind-boggling 800 wickets at an excellent average of 22.72. He also has a stupendous 67 five-wicket hauls and 22 ten-wicket hauls to his name. The 48-year-old has won games for Sri Lanka single-handedly several times and was their messiah in tough situations.
The kind of varity that he had in his bowling and the zip that he used to extract from the surface was simply incredible. Muralitharan never believed in sledging, and that is why he was coined with the nickname 'The Smiling Assassin'.
He still remains the bowler with the most number of Test wickets - a record that is likely to stay intact for many more years to come.