Cricket Facts: Most Ducks in Test Cricket

The contribution of batsmen in test cricket is predominant. At every stage of the match, their execution adds up to a total score against the bowling team. A lot of responsibility falls on the top order and middle-order batsmen. If they fail to accomplish their duties, all the responsibilities fall on the shoulders of the tailenders. At many matches, we have seen that these batsmen somehow manage to tie or win the match but there have also been instances when they failed to do so. There also have been many situations where the batsman got out on a 'duck'. Here is a list of the top 8 cricketers with the most ducks in Test cricket.

1. Courtney Walsh- 43 Ducks

Courtney Walsh is one of the best bowlers in the history of the West Indies cricket team. He was literally the nightmare for every batsman, but he could not show his expertise like his bowling techniques when the time came for him to bat. Walsh is the cricketer with the highest number of ducks in his test career. He played 132 matches and got out for zero 43 times out of it. He started playing in test matches in 1984 and ended his test career in 2001. In this span of 17 years, he scored only 936 runs but his bowling career was top-notch.

Read also: WTC Stats: Most Wickets in the World Test Championship

2. Chris Martin- 36 ducks

Chris Martin was a decisive bowler of the New Zealand cricket team. He showed his excellence with the ball by his amazing pace bowling. Martin bowled in 71 matches and took 233 wickets. His bowling statistics were good, unlike his batting statistics. He clearly was not comfortable while batting and struggled a lot. In 71 matches, he faced 615 balls and scored only 123 runs with the highest score of 12 runs and an average of 2.36. This is one of the lowest run an average in the history of test cricket. The reason why he is included in this list because out of the 71 test matches he played, he got out with a duck 36 times

3. Stuart Broad- 36 ducks

Stuart Broad, the fast bowler of the English cricket team has shown his skills in batting as well. Till now he has smashed 12 half-centuries and 1 century which proves his potential in batting as well. Even after scoring 3211 runs in 138 matches with the highest score of 169, he has enlisted his name in this list of most ducks in Test cricket. He got out with scoring a duck 35 times in his Test career.

4. Glenn McGrath- 35 ducks

Glenn McGrath created havoc with his bowling skills during his time. The batting lineup of Australian cricket time during his time was extraordinary and this is one of the reasons why McGrath could not show and implement his batting skills that much. But in dire situations, he was given opportunities but he couldn't bat for very long. In his 14 years of Test career, he played 124 matches and got out at 0 in 35 of them.

5. Shane Warne- 34 ducks

Shane Warne, the magician when it comes to spinning had a marvelous cricketing career. Even after retiring, he is still the second-highest wicket-taker in the history of test cricket. The Australian cricketer was a tale of horror for the batsmen and he took 708 wickets in Test cricket. This Australian legend could not perform property while batting. He suffered a lot while batting and ended up getting out with a duck way too many times. He got out at zero 34 times in his Test career. At the end moments of his career, he started playing slowly and resiliently where he ended up scoring runs for the team. In the span of 15 years of test cricket career, he has scored a total of 3154 runs with an average of 17.32.

6. Ishant Sharma- 33 ducks

One of the biggest assets of the Indian test cricket team is Ishant Sharma. The fast bowler is continuing to have a remarkable bowling career in Test Cricket. But when it comes to batting he usually lags behind. Ishant has played 101 test matches and has scored 746 runs. He got out at zero 33 times and his highest score is 57 against West Indies with an average of 8.28.

7. Muttiah Muralitharan- 33 ducks

Muttiah Muralitharan, the highest wicket-taker in the history of Test Cricket was clearly a misery for the batsmen. His bowling career was on flick always but he could not do well in batting. His situation while batting was similar to the batsmen who faced him. In 133 matches, he scored 1261 runs with an average of 11.67 and got out for a duck 33 times. His highest score was 67 and this is his only half-century in Test cricket.

8. Zaheer Khan- 29 ducks

Zaheen Khan is one of the finest bowlers of the Indian Cricket team. The fast bowler has played 92 matches where he scored a total of 1231 runs with an average of 11.95. In his test career, he could score 3 half-centuries only with the highest score of 75. In these 92 matches, he got out for a duck 29 of the times. He clearly had ability of scoring more runs as we have seen him performing well and hitting boundaries in the domestic cricket.