10 least injury-prone cricketers in recent history

#5 Mark Waugh

Mark Waugh

Australian batting ace of the 1990s, Mark Waugh was not only one of the finest batsmen of his generation but was also one of the least injury-prone players to have played the game in recent times. Waugh was supremely fit and was considered one of the best fielders of his era.

However, it is indeed a tribute to his technique as a batsman that despite playing most of the Tests on fast, bouncy pitches in Australia he never really suffered any long-term impact injuries that had become the bane of many other batsmen. He played 128 Tests for Australia from 1991 to 2002 and played 107 of them consecutively from 1993 onwards. He turned out in 244 ODIs for Australia as well.

#4 Alastair Cook

Alastair Cook

Alastair Cook doesn't sweat. That is the first thing one has to know about him and why he is a bit of a freak when it comes to fitness. This particular nugget of information tumbled forth when he batted for long hours in the heat of India in 2012 without any trouble, while his team-mates suffered.

Cook plays against some of the fastest bowlers in the world since he is an opener an,d due to his excellent technique, he has never had to suffer any long-term impact injuries. He has played 147 Tests in total and out of those, 145 of them have been on the bounce, which goes to show the extent to which he has been successful in warding off injuries.

#3 Allan Border

Allan Border

Australian cricketers are often described as warriors but if anyone epitomised it then it was their former captain Allan Border, who played 156 Test matches in total for his country and appeared in 153 of them on the trot, without a break. His career lasted just short of 15 years and at a time when cricketers were not particularly too fussy about their fitness levels, he was a revelation.

Border also played 273 ODIs for Australia and throughout his career, there was never a time when he was in any sort of danger of being injured long term. He was probably one of the greatest cricketers Australia has ever had.

#2 Brendon McCullum

Brendon McCullum

Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum played a brand of cricket that could have made many other cricketers susceptible to injuries. However, McCullum is one of those rare cricketers who played all the Test matches in his 12-year career consecutively and never missed one through injuries or otherwise.

However, it is vital to keep in mind that in addition to Tests, he turned out for the national team in 260 ODIs, 71 T20Is and 297 T20 games in domestic competitions in different parts of the world. Even with that sort of a workload, McCullum never suffered any long-term injuries and is rightly regarded as one of the least injury-prone players in the recent history of the game.

#1 MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni debuted in 2004 and from around 2005 onwards, he became a fixture in the Indian team in all formats of the game. He has played 90 Tests, 303 ODIs and 78 T20Is for India, in addition to 266 IPL matches since its inception in 2008.

One might ask, how can one cricketer be the captain of the national team for a significant part of his career, keep wickets across formats, be one of the team's leading batsman and yet hardly ever miss any games through injury.

In that regard, it must be said that Dhoni remains a freak of nature, and even in the twilight of his career, he does not miss games through injury. There is no other player, who has played so much cricket and been able to emerge virtually unscathed from injuries.