5 best first change bowlers in Test cricket

#3 Muttiah Muralitharan

In 62 innings, Muttiah Muralitharan picked up a staggering 247 wickets

He is the most successful bowler in the history of Test cricket and in a glittering career that spanned around 15 years (1993-2008), Muttiah Muralitharan bowled as a first change bowler on numerous occasions. Out of the 133 Test matches in his career, Murali bowled as first change in 62 innings spread across 54 games and his ability to turn the ball square on almost any surface often rendered the relative hardness of the ball immaterial.

In addition to that, the square turners on which he played made it necessary to bring in Sri Lanka’s lethal weapon into the attack as soon as possible and on those occasions; he almost always delivered the goods. In those 62 innings, he picked up a staggering 247 wickets and recorded an average of only 20.02.

On the other hand, he recorded a strike rate of only 49.2 and recorded as many as 20 5 wicket hauls when he bowled as the first change bowler. As far as number go, no one on this list comes close to him. If Murali had bowled first change more often, he would certainly have been the most successful.