The record for taking the most wickets in Test cricket is held by Muttiah Muralitharan (800). He is followed by Shane Warne (708). Even today, in cricket, the greatness of a player is assessed on the basis of the record of Test matches. Even after retirement, the career of the players is understood to a large extent through statistics.
When a player makes a long career in Test cricket, the fans and cricket pundits also keep an eye on the records made during that time, but among the top Test bowlers, there are four such bowlers, who, while retiring, did not care about those big records, which could have become their bigger identity later.
1. James Anderson (England)
James Anderson retired after taking 4 wickets in the Lord’s Test match against West Indies. He ended his Test career with 704 wickets. If he had played to take 5 more wickets, he could have easily broken Shane Warne’s record. James Anderson would then be called the number two Test bowler in the world to take the most wickets, but he did not care about this record.
2. Stuart Broad (England)
James Anderson’s teammate Stuart Broad also announced his retirement after the 5th match of the Ashes series in 2023. Stuart Broad had taken 604 wickets then and Anil Kumble’s record was the one he had to break, who has taken 619 Test wickets. Stuart Broad did not chase this record and he is currently at the fifth position below Kumble in terms of taking most Test wickets.
Also Read: 4 records that James Anderson could not break even after a 21 year long career
3. Rangana Herath (Sri Lanka)
A similar case was seen with Sri Lanka’s left-arm spinner Rangana Herath, when he announced his retirement after taking 433 Test wickets. Rangana Herath was then only 2 wickets away from breaking Kapil Dev’s record of 434 wickets. Herath is the most successful left arm bowler in Test cricket history and was a member of Sri Lankan team that won the 2014 ICC World Twenty20.