Best Australian Fast Bowlers In Tests Featured

Top 10 Australian Fast Bowlers In Tests Since 1950

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All Test Ratings on the website are from 01/01/1950 onwards (Know Why). They are updated till 2026-02-05. Brief explanation of the ratings is given before each section (Detailed Explanation) and at the end. So, here are the Top 10 Australian Fast bowlers in Test Cricket since 1950.

CONTENTS
1. THE CRITERIA
2. QUALIFICATION
3. PRIMARY CRITERIA
3.1. PROLIFIC
3.2. CONSISTENT
3.2.1. Against All Teams
3.2.2. Against Top Teams
3.3. ATTACKING
3.3.1. Against All Teams
3.3.2. Against Top Teams
3.4. BEST BOWLING (WKTS)
3.4.1. Against All Teams
3.4.2. Against Top Teams
3.5. PRIMARY RATING
4. CONDITIONS CRITERIA
4.1. HOME/AWAY
4.1.1. At Home
4.1.2. Away From Home
4.2. FAVOURABLE/UNFAVOURABLE CONDITIONS
4.2.1. Favourable Conditions Rating
4.2.1.1. Non Asians Outside Asia
4.2.2. Unfavourable Conditions Rating
4.2.2.1. Non Asians In Asia
4.3. CONDITIONS RATING
5. SECONDARY CRITERIA
5.1. WKTS/INN
5.2. TOP FORM
5.3. IMPACT INNINGS
5.4. SECONDARY RATING
6. OVERALL RATING
6.1. BRIEF EXPLANATION
6.1.1. Dynamic Nature
6.1.2. Trend Setter (TS)
6.1.3. Top Teams (TT)
6.1.4. Abbreviations
Nations Filter

The Nations Rating filters the OVERALL Rating to show players only from Australia.

  • The Rating of the players from Australia remains the same as in the original OVERALL Rating.
  • Thus the Trend Setter can be from any nation and is not necessarily from Australia.

THE CRITERIA

CRITERIA CONSTITUENTS
Primary Wickets, Average, Strike Rate, Top Inns
Conditions Home, Away, In Asia, Outside Asia
Secondary Wkts Per Inn, Top Form, Impact Inns

QUALIFICATION

Min Innings (TT) 25
Min Career Wkts 50

PRIMARY CRITERIA

CRITERIA STAT POINTS
Prolific Wickets Taken 250.00
Consistent Average 300.00
Attacking Strike Rate 300.00
Best Bowling Top Bowling Performances 150.00

PROLIFIC

The Eras

The time period from 1950 to present is divided into eras for this section. This is because less cricket was played earlier. To make it fair for earlier players they are compared with players of the same period with a slight reduction in points. Know More About Eras.

Era 1 MP before 1976
Era 2 MP between 1975 And 1996
Era 3 MP between 1995 And 2016
Era 4 MP greater than 2015

Criteria: Points For Wickets Taken

RANK ERA 1 NAT FP LP MP INNS WKTS RAT
TS FS Trueman ENG 1952 1965 1958.5 127 307 220.00
1 GD McKenzie AUS 1961 1971 1966 113 246 176.29
2 AK Davidson AUS 1953 1963 1958 82 186 133.29
RANK ERA 2 NAT FP LP MP INNS WKTS RAT
TS CA Walsh WI 1984 2001 1992.5 242 519 240.00
1 DK Lillee AUS 1971 1984 1977.5 132 355 164.16
2 CJ McDermott AUS 1984 1996 1990 124 291 134.57
RANK ERA 3 NAT FP LP MP INNS WKTS RAT
TS JM Anderson ENG 2003 2024 2013.5 350 704 250.00
1 GD McGrath AUS 1993 2007 2000 243 563 199.93
2 MG Johnson AUS 2007 2015 2011 140 313 111.15
3 RJ Harris AUS 2010 2015 2012.5 52 113 40.13
RANK ERA 4 NAT FP LP MP INNS WKTS RAT
TS MA Starc AUS 2011 2026 2018.5 202 433 230.00
1 MA Starc AUS 2011 2026 2018.5 202 433 230.00
2 PJ Cummins AUS 2011 2025 2018 134 315 167.32
3 JR Hazlewood AUS 2014 2025 2019.5 143 295 156.70

CONSISTENT

R Ave

Relative Average (R Ave) is a more accurate type of average. Know How It Is Calculated. Briefly it takes into account:-

  • Strength of Opposition.
  • Venues at which a player has played.
  • Time Period in which a bowler has been active

Criteria: Points For Relative Average

Min Qualification For TS
Min Wickets 75
Min Wickets (TT) 60

Against All Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS RUNS WKTS AVE R AVE RAT
TS JJ Bumrah 99 4631 234 19.79 19.33 120.00
1 RJ Harris 52 2658 113 23.52 20.98 110.53
2 GD McGrath 243 12186 563 21.64 21.34 108.66
3 AK Davidson 82 3819 186 20.53 22.05 105.17
4 PJ Cummins 134 6946 315 22.05 22.41 103.50
5 JR Hazlewood 143 7144 295 24.22 23.88 97.12
6 DK Lillee 132 8493 355 23.92 24.00 96.63
7 MG Johnson 140 8891 313 28.41 25.04 92.61
8 MA Starc 202 11481 433 26.52 26.03 89.08
9 GD McKenzie 113 7328 246 29.79 27.74 83.59
10 CJ McDermott 124 8332 291 28.63 28.11 82.51

Against Top Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS RUNS WKTS AVE R AVE RAT
TS JJ Bumrah 83 4138 193 21.44 20.10 180.00
1 RJ Harris 44 2267 98 23.13 20.30 178.17
2 GD McGrath 163 7991 379 21.08 20.34 177.83
3 PJ Cummins 104 5698 250 22.79 22.37 161.71
4 DK Lillee 91 5837 245 23.82 23.42 154.47
5 AK Davidson 61 2921 131 22.30 23.76 152.23
6 MG Johnson 92 6164 210 29.35 24.23 149.27
7 JR Hazlewood 98 5188 196 26.47 24.55 147.37
8 MA Starc 142 8398 299 28.09 26.38 137.14
9 CJ McDermott 78 5291 179 29.56 28.23 128.13
10 GD McKenzie 76 5105 154 33.15 29.57 122.35

ATTACKING

R SR

Relative Strike Rate (R SR) for bowlers is calculated using the same method as R Ave with average being replaced with SR.

Criteria: Points For R SR or Balls/Wkt

Min Qualification For TS
Min Wickets 75
Min Wickets (TT) 60

Against All Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS BLS WKTS SR R SR RAT
TS M Jansen 38 3408 89 38.29 42.71 120.00
1 DK Lillee 132 18467 355 52.02 47.12 108.78
2 MA Starc 202 20013 433 46.22 48.78 105.07
3 MG Johnson 140 16001 313 51.12 49.52 103.49
4 PJ Cummins 134 14391 315 45.69 49.55 103.45
5 RJ Harris 52 5736 113 50.76 49.63 103.27
6 AK Davidson 82 11587 186 62.30 50.20 102.09
7 GD McGrath 243 29248 563 51.95 50.93 100.63
8 CJ McDermott 124 16586 291 57.00 53.97 94.96
9 JR Hazlewood 143 15423 295 52.28 55.61 92.17
10 GD McKenzie 113 17681 246 71.87 57.88 88.55

Against Top Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS BLS WKTS SR R SR RAT
TS M Jansen 28 2507 62 40.44 42.78 180.00
1 DK Lillee 91 12996 245 53.04 47.20 163.15
2 MG Johnson 92 11156 210 53.12 48.39 159.12
3 RJ Harris 44 4937 98 50.38 48.60 158.45
4 MA Starc 142 14362 299 48.03 49.03 157.04
5 PJ Cummins 104 11609 250 46.44 49.13 156.72
6 GD McGrath 163 19727 379 52.05 50.11 153.67
7 AK Davidson 61 8367 131 63.87 51.97 148.18
8 CJ McDermott 78 10055 179 56.17 52.33 147.14
9 JR Hazlewood 98 10831 196 55.26 56.28 136.81
10 GD McKenzie 76 12188 154 79.14 61.00 126.22

BEST BOWLING (WKTS)

BBW

In this criteria, we have taken the top 7 bowling performances by Wkts of a bowler. Best Bowling By Wickets (BBW) is simply the total wickets taken in the 7 innings divided by 7.

Criteria: Points For Wkts Taken In Top 7 Inns

Against All Teams

RANK BOWLER 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BBW RAT
TS N Kapil Dev 9/83 8/85 8/106 7/56 7/220 6/63 6/77 7.29 50.00
1 GD McGrath 8/24 8/38 7/76 7/76 6/17 6/47 6/50 6.86 47.06
2 GD McKenzie 8/71 7/66 7/153 6/48 6/58 6/67 6/69 6.57 45.10
3 DK Lillee 7/83 7/89 6/26 6/53 6/60 6/66 6/72 6.29 43.14
3 CJ McDermott 8/97 8/141 6/38 6/53 6/70 5/42 5/49 6.29 43.14
3 MG Johnson 8/61 7/40 7/68 6/38 6/73 5/39 5/42 6.29 43.14
6 MA Starc 7/58 6/9 6/48 6/50 6/66 6/75 6/111 6.14 42.16
7 AK Davidson 7/93 6/34 6/53 6/64 6/75 6/87 5/25 6.00 41.18
8 PJ Cummins 6/23 6/27 6/28 6/79 6/91 5/28 5/38 5.71 39.22
9 JR Hazlewood 6/67 6/70 6/89 5/8 5/30 5/31 5/35 5.43 37.25
10 RJ Harris 7/117 6/47 5/25 5/62 5/72 4/32 4/33 5.14 35.29

Against Top Teams

RANK BOWLER 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BBW RAT
TS N Kapil Dev 9/83 8/85 8/106 7/56 7/220 6/63 6/77 7.29 100.00
1 GD McGrath 8/24 6/17 6/47 6/50 6/85 6/86 6/115 6.29 86.27
2 DK Lillee 7/83 7/89 6/26 6/60 6/66 6/171 5/15 6.14 84.31
2 MG Johnson 8/61 7/40 7/68 6/38 5/42 5/59 5/63 6.14 84.31
4 MA Starc 7/58 6/48 6/50 6/75 6/111 6/154 5/34 6.00 82.35
5 GD McKenzie 8/71 7/153 6/48 5/33 5/37 5/53 5/65 5.86 80.39
6 AK Davidson 6/53 6/64 6/75 6/87 5/25 5/42 5/63 5.57 76.47
6 PJ Cummins 6/27 6/28 6/79 6/91 5/28 5/38 5/42 5.57 76.47
8 CJ McDermott 8/141 6/70 5/49 5/80 5/97 4/33 4/35 5.29 72.55
8 JR Hazlewood 6/67 6/89 5/8 5/30 5/31 5/48 5/57 5.29 72.55
10 RJ Harris 7/117 6/47 5/25 5/62 5/72 4/32 4/33 5.14 70.59

PRIMARY RATING

The total of the above four criteria comes out to be 1,000.00 points. The Primary Rating is the addition of the points a bowler scored in the four criteria. The Weightage of the Rating is 40%.

RANK BOWLER PRO CON ATT BBW RAT PRI PTS
1 GD McGrath 199.93 286.49 100.63 133.33 874.05 349.62
2 MA Starc 230.00 226.22 105.07 124.51 842.85 337.14
3 DK Lillee 164.16 251.10 108.78 127.45 814.64 325.86
4 PJ Cummins 167.32 265.22 103.45 115.69 808.39 323.36
5 AK Davidson 133.29 257.40 102.09 117.65 758.60 303.44
6 MG Johnson 111.15 241.88 103.49 127.45 743.09 297.23
7 JR Hazlewood 156.70 244.49 92.17 109.80 739.97 295.99
8 GD McKenzie 176.29 205.94 88.55 125.49 722.49 288.99
9 CJ McDermott 134.57 210.64 94.96 115.69 702.99 281.20
10 RJ Harris 40.13 288.71 103.27 105.88 696.44 278.58

CONDITIONS CRITERIA

The Conditions

The Conditions Ratings are calculated by applying the four criteria of the Primary Rating to diffirent conditions. If Innings are less than the Qualification than the Player gets 50% of the Points. Click on the Ratings to see how they were calculated.

The four conditions criteria and thier weightage is as follows:-

CRITERIA POINTS
Home 30.00
Away 120.00
Favourable Conditions 30.00
Unfavourable Conditions 120.00

HOME/AWAY

HM/AW RATING

Points to note:-

  • U.A.E. is considered as a second Home for Pakistan and Afghanistan.
  • All Home and Away stats of Pakistani and Afghani bowlers are calculated accordingly.

At Home

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 10

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE SR RAT WTG
1 DK Lillee 84 231 23.73 49.93 805.35 24.16
2 MA Starc 117 266 25.70 45.79 764.25 22.93
3 GD McGrath 131 289 22.43 54.77 735.14 22.05
4 PJ Cummins 75 183 19.91 43.22 717.97 21.54
5 CJ McDermott 78 193 26.47 53.85 694.48 20.83
6 MG Johnson 66 171 25.48 45.98 688.30 20.65
7 JR Hazlewood 76 168 22.70 52.09 671.27 20.14
8 AK Davidson 32 84 21.05 57.55 662.35 19.87
9 GD McKenzie 49 109 30.61 69.92 612.29 18.37
10 RJ Harris 24 49 24.88 55.59 527.08 15.81

Away From Home

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 10

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE SR RAT WTG
1 GD McGrath 112 274 20.81 48.97 878.67 105.44
2 MA Starc 85 167 27.81 46.90 776.31 93.16
3 PJ Cummins 59 132 25.02 49.10 753.56 90.43
4 RJ Harris 28 64 22.48 47.06 714.45 85.73
5 GD McKenzie 64 137 29.14 73.43 692.16 83.06
6 DK Lillee 48 124 24.28 55.91 682.70 81.92
7 JR Hazlewood 67 127 26.22 52.54 681.68 81.80
8 AK Davidson 50 102 20.11 66.21 678.97 81.48
9 MG Johnson 74 142 31.93 57.32 652.73 78.33
10 CJ McDermott 46 98 32.89 63.18 579.25 69.51

FAVOURABLE/UNFAVOURABLE CONDITIONS

FC/UC Rating

Points to note:-

  • Unfavourable Conditions (UC) is Outside Asia for Spinners and In Asia for Pacers.
  • Favourable Conditions (FC) are the opposite.

Favourable Conditions Rating

Non Asians Outside Asia

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 15

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE SR RAT WTG
1 GD McGrath 207 491 21.44 51.52 841.07 25.23
2 DK Lillee 126 349 23.16 50.64 826.52 24.80
3 MA Starc 167 375 26.17 45.15 806.12 24.18
4 PJ Cummins 117 284 21.20 43.79 786.42 23.59
5 MG Johnson 117 280 27.00 47.71 740.70 22.22
6 JR Hazlewood 126 279 23.36 49.82 733.51 22.01
7 AK Davidson 62 142 21.36 63.36 707.20 21.22
8 CJ McDermott 112 270 27.97 55.94 703.53 21.11
9 GD McKenzie 96 204 32.07 75.33 671.19 20.14
10 RJ Harris 48 102 24.49 52.35 643.24 19.30

Unfavourable Conditions Rating

Non Asians In Asia

Min Innings Vs All Teams: 7

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE SR RAT WTG
1 MA Starc 35 58 28.76 53.12 800.47 96.06
2 GD McKenzie 17 42 18.71 55.07 798.70 95.84
3 AK Davidson 20 44 17.86 58.86 795.45 95.45
4 GD McGrath 36 72 23.03 54.88 775.01 93.00
5 PJ Cummins 17 31 29.84 63.03 599.75 71.97
6 MG Johnson 23 33 40.36 80.06 509.99 61.20
7 DK Lillee 6 6 68.33 132.00 500.00 60.00
7 RJ Harris 4 11 14.55 36.00 500.00 60.00
9 CJ McDermott 12 21 37.14 70.57 450.69 54.08
10 JR Hazlewood 17 16 39.19 95.19 401.45 48.17

CONDITIONS RATING

The Conditions Rating is the addition of the points a bowler scored in the four criteria. The Weightage of the Rating is 30%.

RANK BOWLER AWAY HOME UC FC CON PTS
1 GD McGrath 878.67 183.79 775.01 210.27 245.73
2 MA Starc 776.31 191.06 800.47 201.53 236.32
3 AK Davidson 678.97 165.59 795.45 176.80 218.02
4 GD McKenzie 692.16 153.07 798.70 167.80 217.41
5 PJ Cummins 753.56 179.49 599.75 196.60 207.53
6 DK Lillee 682.70 201.34 500.00 206.63 190.88
7 MG Johnson 652.73 172.07 509.99 185.17 182.40
8 RJ Harris 714.45 131.77 500.00 160.81 180.84
9 JR Hazlewood 681.68 167.82 401.45 183.38 172.12
10 CJ McDermott 579.25 173.62 450.69 175.88 165.53

SECONDARY CRITERIA

The Secondary Rating consists of three parts. If Innings are less than the Qualification than the Player gets 50% of the Points. Click on the Rating Titles to see how they were calculated.

The three secondary criteria and thier weightage is as follows:-

CRITERIA POINTS
Wickets Per Inn 50.00
Top Form 100.00
Impact Innings 150.00

WKTS/INN

WPI RATING

Points to note about WPI Rating:-

  • It gives points for three criteria.
  • The number of wkts per inn overall and aganst Top Teams.
  • The number of bowled victims per inn.
  • The number of top 7 batsmen dismissed per inn.

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 25

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS W/I RAT WTG
1 DK Lillee 132 355 2.69 807.46 40.37
2 GD McKenzie 113 246 2.18 752.55 37.63
3 AK Davidson 82 186 2.27 749.67 37.48
4 PJ Cummins 134 315 2.35 715.23 35.76
5 MA Starc 202 433 2.14 704.86 35.24
6 RJ Harris 52 113 2.17 704.78 35.24
7 CJ McDermott 124 291 2.35 703.45 35.17
8 GD McGrath 243 563 2.32 688.55 34.43
9 MG Johnson 140 313 2.24 677.56 33.88
10 JR Hazlewood 143 295 2.06 627.34 31.37

TOP FORM

TF RATING

Points to note about TF Rating:-

  • TF is calculated by taking the best 50 consecutive innings of a bowler.
  • The inns are taken such that his points are maximum.
  • Only innings against Top Teams are considered.

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 20

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE SR RAT WTG
1 GD McGrath 50 139 17.71 45.71 885.97 88.60
2 DK Lillee 50 148 23.26 48.36 861.32 86.13
3 PJ Cummins 50 128 19.83 44.79 806.56 80.66
4 MG Johnson 50 125 26.81 47.34 801.96 80.20
5 AK Davidson 50 120 21.40 60.14 781.89 78.19
6 MA Starc 50 118 25.59 45.42 756.16 75.62
7 RJ Harris 44 98 23.13 50.38 747.39 74.74
8 CJ McDermott 50 124 28.48 53.51 733.97 73.40
9 GD McKenzie 50 117 29.32 71.71 720.42 72.04
10 JR Hazlewood 50 104 24.98 56.55 686.33 68.63

IMPACT INNINGS

II RATING

Impact Innings (II) are those innings which have an impact either in terms of wickets or strike rate. Know All About II. These are the criteria for an inning to be included in II:-

  • A Bowler equal to or more wickets than 2 at a good AVE or SR.
  • The required AVE or SR increases as the number of wickets taken increases.

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 25

RANK BOWLER INNS II II Perc RAT WTG
1 GD McGrath 243 128 52.67 878.20 131.73
2 DK Lillee 132 66 50.00 766.65 115.00
3 PJ Cummins 134 64 47.76 762.20 114.33
4 CJ McDermott 124 59 47.58 741.91 111.29
5 MA Starc 202 81 40.10 715.27 107.29
6 RJ Harris 52 27 51.92 711.18 106.68
7 GD McKenzie 113 49 43.36 708.57 106.28
8 JR Hazlewood 143 63 44.06 702.57 105.39
9 AK Davidson 82 38 46.34 695.19 104.28
10 MG Johnson 140 68 48.57 692.63 103.89

SECONDARY RATING

The Secondary Rating is the addition of the points a bowler scored in the three criteria. The Weightage of the Rating is 30%.

RANK BOWLER TF WPI II SEC RAT
1 GD McGrath 88.60 34.43 131.73 254.76
2 DK Lillee 86.13 40.37 115.00 241.50
3 PJ Cummins 80.66 35.76 114.33 230.75
4 AK Davidson 78.19 37.48 104.28 219.95
5 CJ McDermott 73.40 35.17 111.29 219.85
6 MA Starc 75.62 35.24 107.29 218.15
7 MG Johnson 80.20 33.88 103.89 217.97
8 RJ Harris 74.74 35.24 106.68 216.65
9 GD McKenzie 72.04 37.63 106.28 215.95
10 JR Hazlewood 68.63 31.37 105.39 205.39

OVERALL RATING

OVERALL Rating is the addition of the points of all the above criteria. The rating is out of 1,000 Pts.

RANK OV RANK BOWLER NAT PRI RAT CON RAT SEC RAT FIN RAT
1 2 GD McGrath AUS 349.62 245.73 254.76 850.10
2 10 MA Starc AUS 337.14 236.32 218.15 791.61
3 15 PJ Cummins AUS 323.36 207.53 230.75 761.63
4 16 DK Lillee AUS 325.86 190.88 241.50 758.24
5 20 AK Davidson AUS 303.44 218.02 219.95 741.41
6 25 GD McKenzie AUS 288.99 217.41 215.95 722.36
7 33 MG Johnson AUS 297.23 182.40 217.97 697.60
8 38 RJ Harris AUS 278.58 180.84 216.65 676.07
9 40 JR Hazlewood AUS 295.99 172.12 205.39 673.49
10 42 CJ McDermott AUS 281.20 165.53 219.85 666.58

BRIEF EXPLANATION

Dynamic Nature

Most of our ratings are dynamic, and as new matches are played, the rating of earlier bowlers may change if current bowlers set new benchmarks.

Trend Setter (TS)

  1. TS is the player who does the best in a criteria.
  2. The rating of all other players are calculated taking the TS as the benchmark. Example:-
  3. TS Bowling Ave: 25.00; Player X Ave: 30.00; Section Points: 300.00
  4. TS Points: 300.00 (Max)
  5. Player X Points: TS Ave/Ave X 300 = 25.00/30.00 X 300 = 250.00.
  6. Ratings of all sections are calculated similarly with Ave being replaced by the Criteria Stat.
  7. Know All About the Trend Setter
    8. .

Top Teams (TT)

  1. An opposition is counted as a TT considering its Win/Loss (WL) Ratios in last 7 years.
  2. Home, Away, In Asia, Outside Asia and Overall WL Ratio is considered.
  3. The WL Ratio should be more than a certain value overall or in specific conditions.

Abbreviations

  1. AVE - Average or Runs/Wkt
  2. BLS - Balls
  3. ER - Economy Rate or Runs/Over
  4. FF, 5WH - Five Fors or 5 Wkt Hauls
  5. FP - First Played by Year
  6. INF - Infinite
  7. INNS - Innings
  8. LP - Last Played by Year
  9. MDNS - Maidens
  10. MP - Middle Played or (FP+LP)/2
  11. NA - Not Applicable
  12. NI - Not In Top
  13. NK - Not Known
  14. NO, * - Not Out
  15. NQ - Not Qualified
  16. OPP - Opposition
  17. OVRS - Overs
  18. SR - Strike Rate or Balls/Wkts
  19. TS - Trend Setter
  20. TT - Top Teams
  21. WKTS - Wickets Taken

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