Can Vettori challenge Hadlee's record?

A few weeks ago, after Ricky Ponting had surpassed Allan Border as Australia's highest run-scorer in Tests, we dug up the lists of progressive record holders for most runs for each country. This week, we've looked at the succession of record wicket-takers for each country in Tests.

During the second Test of the ongoing tour of Sri Lanka, Daniel Vettori became the first left-arm spinner, and the second New Zealander, to take 300 Test wickets. He's long been his country's second highest wicket-taker, passing Chris Cairns' tally of 218 in 2006, and he has only Richard Hadlee ahead of him. Hadlee claimed the record from Richard Collinge in 1980 and extended it from 116 to 431 wickets, which is the oldest standing national record at present (29 years). He retired as the world-record holder and remained at the summit until Kapil Dev overtook him.

Whether Vettori will pass Hadlee is a matter of conjecture. He is 30 years old and is 128 wickets behind Hadlee at present. Given the low number of Tests New Zealand play annually, Vettori will have to combine consistency with longevity in order to challenge the national record. If he doesn't, though, Hadlee's 431 will stand for years and years, for the next closest bowlers are Chris Martin, 34, on 165 and James Franklin, 28, on 80 wickets.

The second-longest standing national record at present is Ian Botham's 383 wickets for England. He broke the record, belonging to Bob Willis, when he took his 326th wicket, that of Graeme Wood in the Lord's Test during the 1985 Ashes. The closest among the current bowlers are Steve Harmison, who has 222 wickets, and James Anderson, who has 140.

During the 19th century, the England record changed hands repeatedly and quickly between Alfred Shaw, George Ulyett, Billy Bates, Bobby Peel, George Lohmann, and Johnny Briggs, who left it at 118 wickets in 1899. Thirteen years later Sydney Barnes broke it and his career tally of 189 wickets stood until 1953.

Australia is the only country to have had more than one legspinner as its highest wicket-taker over the years (India's Anil Kumble is the only other legbreak record holder among all other countries). Shane Warne's 708 wickets is the present record and he became the Australian record holder, overtaking Dennis Lillee's tally of 355 Test wickets, by having Paul Wiseman caught behind - off glove, arm and shoulder - at Eden Park in 2000.

Before Lillee, Richie Benaud held the record, achieving it by surpassing Ray Lindwall's tally of 228 in 1963 before retiring with 248 Test wickets. Lindwall had taken the mantle from Clarrie Grimmett, the first Australian legspinner to hold the record. Grimmett was also the first bowler to take 200 Test wickets, and finished with 216 scalps from 37 Tests.

As a result of South Africa's isolation from international cricket, Hugh Tayfield was the country's record holder from the time he broke Cyril Vincent's record of 84 wickets in 1955, until Allan Donald surpassed his final haul of 170 at the MCG in 1997. Donald took nine wickets in that match and his last - that of Michael Kasprowicz - brought him the record. He eventually finished with 330 wickets, and his tally has since been broken by Shaun Pollock, who ended his career with 421. His record may not stand for much longer though, for Makhaya Ntini, currently on 388 Test wickets, is closing in.

The West Indian factory line, which once produced a seemingly endless supply of fast bowlers, has long since broken down and the ongoing contract issue between the players and the WICB could deprive the national team of the best of the present lot. Fidel Edwards currently has 122 wickets, Daren Powell has 85, and Jerome Taylor has 81. Courtney Walsh's once world-record tally for 519 is safe for the foreseeable future.

Unlike the other countries, India's list of progressive highest wicket-takers is dominated by spinners. The first three players in the table below are medium-pacers but in the last 60 years four of India's five record-holders have been spinners, with Anil Kumble - 619 wickets - being the latest.

Pakistan, on the other hand, don't have any spinners in their list of progressive record-holders, which basically consists of four bowlers. Fazal Mahmood was the first long-term record holder, finishing his career in 1962 with 139 wickets. His record was equalled by Imran Khan in Brisbane in 1981 and broken in the next Test at the MCG. Imran finished his career with 362 wickets in 1992, a record that stood until 1999, when Wasim Akram claimed the 363rd in his 414-wicket career in Delhi.

Muttiah Muralitharan became Sri Lanka's highest wicket-taker way back in 1995 by taking a caught and bowled off Inzamam-ul-Haq in Faisalabad and surpassing Rumesh Ratnayake's modest tally of 73. No Sri Lankan bowler has got close to Murali since, and his haul in the last 14 years has swollen to a world-record 778 wickets. Chaminda Vaas took 355 wickets but has retired, and no other Sri Lankan bowler has passed even 100.

If there's a particular List you would like to see, email us with your comments and suggestions.