In Test cricket, a match moves at a slow pace, and unlike limited-overs cricket, batters don’t rush to score runs quickly. They tend to take time to settle on the pitch, as protecting their wicket is more precious than slogging every ball.
That’s one reason bowlers earn more dot balls and maiden overs in their spells. However, dot balls can be used as a tactic to create pressure on batters to tempt them into playing a wrong shot.
This article lists the top 10 bowlers with the most dot balls in Test cricket.
Most Dots Balls Bowled in Tests
| Player | Innings | Dot Balls Bowled |
|---|---|---|
| James Anderson (ENG) | 350 | 31551 |
| Stuart Broad (ENG) | 309 | 26158 |
| Nathan Lyon (AUS) | 249 | 24807 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin (IND) | 200 | 20376 |
| Harbhajan Singh (IND) | 179 | 20214 |
| Muthiah Muralidaran (IND) | 142 | 19866 |
| Rangana Herath (SL) | 169 | 18961 |
| Tim Southee (NZ) | 203 | 18141 |
| Daniel Vettori (NZ) | 150 | 17753 |
| Anil Kumble (IND) | 135 | 17505 |
(Note: The stats are based on matches where ball-by-ball data is available.)
Key Stats
James Anderson holds the record for bowling the most dot balls in Test cricket. The veteran English pacer has sent down 31400+ dot balls in his illustrious career.
Over 15 bowlers have delivered more than 14000 dot balls throughout their international red-ball careers.
139.90 is the average number of dot balls bowled by Muthiah Muralidaran per Test innings. This is the highest number of dot balls delivered by a bowler per innings (minimum 14000 dot balls).
