Top five: England’s leading wicket-takers

**James Anderson (540 wickets in 138 Tests)**The 35-year-old pacer from Burnley, in Lancashire, has carved his name in England's Test history as one of their most prolific swing bowlers. A smooth, rhythmic action with the ability to move the ball both ways at good pace has made Anderson England's most successful bowler.

He made his Test debut in 2003 and has gone on to be the leader of the bowling unit, being a part of three successful Ashes campaigns.

Anderson passed Ian Botham's record Test-wicket haul of 383 wickets in the West Indies in 2015 and shortly after reached the 400-wicket mark against New Zealand at Headingley. In 2017, Anderson claimed his 500th wicket in Test cricket dismissing Windies opener Kraigg Brathwaite with a peach of an in-swinger. He is currently on 540 wickets from 138 Tests at 27.23.

**Stuart Broad (417 wickets in 118 Tests)**England have been extremely lucky to have two of their leading wicket-takers' careers run almost parallel to each other. Broad made his Test debut in 2007 against Sri Lanka in Colombo and soon came out of Anderson's shadows making a mark for himself.

Standing 6ft 5in tall, Broad's tendency to extract bounce from any surface and the ability to move the ball at good speeds made him the perfect bowling partner for Anderson.

His spell of 8/15 during the first session of the fourth Ashes Test in 2015 at Trent Bridge helped England rout Australia for 60 and remains one of the best bowling efforts by any English bowler. He went past Botham's wicket-tally in 2017 and currently has 417 scalps to his name in 118 outings at a flattering 28.89.

**Ian Botham (383 wickets in 102 Tests)**Perhaps the greatest all-rounder to have ever turned out for England, Ian Botham was the sort of player who had the potential to change a game in a session. His most famous feat was almost single-handedly taking England to an Ashes win in 1981, which later was popularly known as 'Botham's Ashes'.

In a career that saw its ups and downs, Botham finished as England's then leading wicket-taker in Tests with 383 wickets at 28.40. He is now a TV commentator.

**Bob Willis (325 wickets in 90 Tests)**Standing at 6ft 6in, a lean figure with a smooth easy action, it is indeed a miracle in some ways that Willis managed to play 90 Tests for his country. He had both his knees operated on at the age of 26 and there was seldom a game in which he didn't play in pain.

Willis made his debut in 1971 and went on to play for another 13 years before retiring with 325 wickets to his name at 25.20. Botham's 149 is talked about during the third Ashes Test in Leeds in 1981, but Willis had a major role to play in that game as well. With Australia needing just 130 runs to win in the fourth innings, he produced one of the best bowling efforts of all time picking up 8/43 in 15.1 overs to bundle the visitors out for 111.

**Fred Trueman (307 wickets in 67 Tests)**On his day, the late Fred Trueman was one of the fiercest pacers of his time. He was the first bowler to take 300 wickets in Test cricket from any country, a landmark he reached in 1964 at The Oval. He finished his Test career at 307 wickets in 67 outings at an incredible average of 21.57. His first-class statistics make for more breathtaking reading. He played 603 first-class games in which he picked up 2304 wickets at an average of 18.29 striking at 43.2! A servant to the game like no other.

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