The Men's Test Cricket Hall of Fame
Here's where you'll find our list of the 100 greatest men's Test cricketers of all time . . .
We'll be counting down from 100 to 1 (plus some extras) in a series of episodes on our Top Order Podcast feed. Each episode will introduce five new members of the Hall of Fame, then they’ll be revealed below, where you’ll find a link to their bio, a detailed discussion of their career and their case for inclusion, and our verdict on why they belong in the Hall.
You’ll find all five tiers of the list in here as we get to them. Confused about why there are five tiers? Read our preamble to find out more.
The Benchmarks
Players outside the Top 100
These are the players that didn't quite make the cut, but nonetheless form a key part of our Hall of Fame discussion . . .
In future, this section will also include tributes to great cricketers from each Test nation that are greats in their own countries, but might not make it to the Hall of Fame.
103: Shakib Al Hasan | 2007 – present. 58 Tests. 3,933 runs @ 39.33. 5 hundreds. 215 wickets @ 31.06. In one word: Talisman |
102: Nathan Lyon | 2011 – present. 100 Tests. 399 wickets @ 32.12. In one word: Almost |
101: Mark Waugh | 1991 - 2002. 128 Tests. 8,029 runs @ 41.81. 20 hundreds. In one word: Talented |
The Club
Players 100-66.
You must be truly great to make this list. Plenty of outstanding cricketers have not made the final cut. Those in ‘The Club’ have most likely impacted the game significantly (Sir Frank Worrell), or have carved out a statistical record that demanded inclusion, despite their overall impact on the game not being as significant as those in the higher tiers (VVS Laxman).
And apologies to Adam Voges, but longevity counts here. Unless your peak two or three years redefined the game of cricket or provided a ground-breaking change in how our game is played, you need the runs (or wickets) on the board.
100: David Warner | 2011 - present. 86 Tests. 7,311 runs @ 48.09. 24 hundreds. In one word: Bludgeoning |
99: Graham Gooch | 1975 - 1995. 118 Tests. 8,900 runs @ 42.58. 20 hundreds. In one word: Longevity |
98: Ian Bishop | 1989 - 1998. 43 Tests. 161 wickets @ 24.27. Strike rate 52.2. In one word: Curtailed |
97: David Gower | 1978 - 1992. 117 Tests. 8,231 runs @ 44.25. 18 hundreds. In one word: Graceful |
96: Alec Stewart | 1989 - 2003. 133 Tests. 8,463 runs @ 39.54. 15 hundreds. 263 catches. 14 stumpings. In one word: Bulldog |
95: Kapil Dev | 1978 – 1994. 131 Tests. 5,248 runs @ 31.05. 8 hundreds. 434 wickets @ 2964. Strike rate 63.9. In one word: Ground-breaker |
94: Alan Knott | 1967 – 1981. 95 Tests. 4,389 runs @ 32.75. 5 hundreds. 250 catches. 19 stumpings. In one word: Artisan |
93: Andy Roberts | 1974 – 1983. 47 Tests. 202 wickets @ 25.61. Strike rate 55.1. In one word: Genesis |
92: MS Dhoni | 2004 – 2019. 90 Tests. 4,876 runs @ 38.09. 6 hundreds. 256 catches. 38 stumpings. In one word: Inspiration |
91: VVS Laxman | 1996 – 2012. 134 Tests. 8,781 runs @ 45.97. 17 hundreds. In one word: Silky |
90: Denis Compton | 1937 – 1957. 78 Tests. 5,807 runs @ 50.06. 17 hundreds. In one word: Prolific |
89: Neil Harvey | 1948 – 1963. 79 Tests. 6,149 runs @ 48.41. 21 hundreds. In one word: Underrated |
88: Mitchell Johnson | 2007 - 2015. 73 Tests. 313 wickets @ 28.40. Strike rate 51.1. In one word: Misunderstood |
87: Alec Bedser | 1946 – 1955. 51 Tests. 236 wickets @ 24.89. Strike rate 67.4. In one word: Dominant |
86: Jim Laker | 1948 – 1959. 46 Tests. 193 wickets @ 21.24. Strike rate 62.3. In one word: 19-90 |
85: Mark Boucher | 1997 - 2012. 147 Tests. 5,515 runs @ 30.30. 5 hundreds. 532 catches. 23 stumpings. In one word: Abrasive |
84: Ian Healy | 1988 - 1999. 119 Tests. 4,356 runs @ 27.38. 4 hundreds. 366 catches. 29 stumpings. In one word: Heartbeat |
83: Ray Lindwall | 1946 - 1960. 61 Tests. 228 wickets @ 23.03. Strike rate 59.8. In one word: Intimidating |
82: Sir Frank Worrell | 1948 - 1963. 51 Tests. 3,860 runs @ 49.48. 9 hundreds. In one word: Fatherly |
81: Sir Clive Lloyd | 1966 - 1985. 51 Tests. 7,515 runs @ 46.67. 19 hundreds. In one word: Leader |
80: Bill O'Reilly | 1932 - 1946. 27 Tests. 144 wickets @ 22.59. Strike rate 69.6. In one word: Tiger |
79: Rangana Herath | 1999 - 2018. 93 Tests. 433 wickets @ 28.07. Strike rate 60.0. In one word: Unassuming |
78: Makhaya Ntini | 1998 - 2009. 101 Tests. 390 wickets @ 28.82. Strike rate 53.4. In one word: Trailblazer |
77: Bob Willis | 1971 - 1984. 90 Tests. 325 wickets @ 25.2. Strike rate 53.4. In one word: Headingley |
76: Andy Flower | 1992 - 2002. 63 Tests. 4,794 runs @ 51.54. 12 hundreds. 151 catches. 9 stumpings. In one word: Brave |
75: Michael Clarke | 2004 - 2015. 115 Tests. 8,643 runs @ 49.10. 28 hundreds. In one word: Footwork |
74: Sir Geoffrey Boycott | 1964 - 1982. 108 Tests. 8,114 runs @ 47.72. 22 hundreds. In one word: Stalwart |
73: Kevin Pietersen | 2005 - 2014. 104 Tests. 8,181 runs @ 47.28. 23 hundreds. In one word: Brilliant |
72: Mike Hussey | 2005 - 2013. 79 Tests. 6,235 runs @ 51.52. 19 hundreds. In one word: Cricket |
71: Virender Sehwag | 2001 - 2013. 104 Tests. 8,586 runs @ 49.34. 23 hundreds. In one word: Swashbuckler |
70: Alan Davidson | 1953 - 1963. 44 Tests. 186 wickets @ 20.53. Strike rate 62.3. In one word: Modern |
69: Clarrie Grimmett | 1925 - 1936. 37 Tests. 216 wickets @ 24.22. Strike rate 67.2. In one word: Disguise |
68: Hashim Amla | 2004 - 2019. 124 Tests. 9,282 runs @ 46.64. 28 hundreds. In one word: Unflappable |
67: Inzamam-ul-Haq | 1992 - 2007. 120 Tests. 8,830 runs @ 49.60. 25 hundreds. In one word: Enigma |
66: Joe Root | 2012 - present. 109 matches. 9,278 runs @ 50.15. 23 hundreds. In one word: Character |
65: WG Grace | 1880 - 1899. 22 Tests. 1,098 runs @ 32.29. 2 hundreds. 9 wickets @ 26.22. Strike rate 74.0. In one word: Godfather |
64: Michael Holding | 1952 - 1964. 63 Tests. 2,201 runs @ 24.45. 3 hundreds. 248 wickets @ 27.03. Strike rate 77.0. In one word: Whisper |
63: Vernon Philander | 2011 - 2020. 64 Tests. 1,779 runs @ 24.04. 224 wickets @ 22.32. Strike rate 50.8. In one word: Metronome |
62: Richie Benaud | 1975 - 1987. 60 Tests. 249 wickets @ 23.68. Strike rate 50.9. In one word: Joy |
61: Anil Kumble | 1990 - 2008. 132 Tests. 619 wickets @ 29.65. Strike rate 65.9. In one word: Subtle |