Top 10 Best Spinners in the World of All Time – 2025

Shane Warne is one of the best spin bowlers ever. He took more than 1000 wickets in international cricket. Only Muttiah Muralitharan took more wickets than him. Warne played 339 matches and took 1001 wickets in total.

Warne came from Australia, a country known for fast bowlers. He changed this by showing great skill in spin bowling. He took 708 wickets in 145 Test matches and 293 wickets in 194 One Day Internationals (ODIs).

He bowled with his right arm and used leg spin. He also batted with his right hand. His leg spin and flipper balls helped him get many wickets. One important moment was the 1999 World Cup semi-final, where he showed his skill under pressure. Many players try to learn how Warne bowled.

Warne was the first bowler to take 700 wickets in Test cricket. He had the record for most Test wickets until 2007. He played 145 Tests and took 708 wickets, the highest number at that time. Warne won awards like Wisden Cricketer of the Year two times. He also won Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World twice.

One of his famous moments is called the "ball of the century". This delivery surprised everyone and is remembered as one of cricket’s best moments.

Muttiah Muralitharan is a famous spin bowler from Sri Lanka. Many people think he is one of the best bowlers in cricket history. He was very hard for batsmen to play against. Muralitharan took the most wickets in all types of international matches with 1347 wickets in 495 games.

He is the only bowler to take 800 wickets in Test matches. He played 133 Test matches and took 800 wickets. In One Day Internationals (ODIs), he took 534 wickets in 350 games. He also played 66 matches in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and took 63 wickets.

Muralitharan is known for being a very skilled spinner. He is a member of the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. He is the only bowler to take more than 800 Test wickets and more than 530 ODI wickets. He was the first bowler to use wrist-spin off-spin in cricket.

He bowled with a short run-up. He released the ball with a very flexible wrist and turned his forearm a little. This helped the ball spin on many different pitches.

Muralitharan took 9 wickets in one Test innings two times. He won the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World award in 2000 and 2006.

Anil Kumble is a former cricket player from India. Many people think he is the best spinner India has had. He helped India win many matches during his career, which lasted about 20 years. Kumble is the only Indian bowler who took 10 wickets in a single Test innings. He did this against Pakistan in Delhi in 1999.

He took 619 wickets in 132 Test matches and 337 wickets in 271 One Day Internationals (ODIs). Kumble played for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he took 45 wickets in 42 games.

Kumble also led the Indian team as captain. He is one of the best leg spin bowlers in cricket history. He ranks fourth in the list of top wicket-takers.

At the start of his career, Kumble was a fast bowler. His bowling style was unique and helped him become one of the greatest spinners. In Tests, he bowled 40,850 balls during his career. He took 956 wickets in all international matches.

Kumble was clever in picking wickets. Even top batsmen found him hard to face. His record of 10 wickets in one innings is famous in cricket.

In 2015, Kumble entered the ICC Hall of Fame.

Rangana Herath is a former cricket player from Sri Lanka. He helped his team win many matches with his left-arm spin bowling. He took important wickets in key moments for his team. Herath played cricket for 19 years.

He took 333 wickets in 93 Test matches. In One Day Internationals (ODIs), he took 74 wickets in 71 games. In Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), he took 18 wickets in 17 matches.

Herath was a captain of Sri Lanka’s Test team. He is known as one of the best spinners in cricket history. He holds the record for the most wickets by a left-arm bowler in Test cricket. Herath was part of the Sri Lankan team that won the ICC World Twenty20 in 2014.

He was the first left-arm spinner to reach 400 wickets in Test matches. On 10 February 2018, during a series against Bangladesh, Herath passed Wasim Akram’s record to become the most successful left-arm bowler in Test cricket.

His Test career lasted from 1999 to 2018, the longest for a Sri Lankan player.

Graeme Swann played cricket for England. He was a right-arm off-spin bowler and one of the best spinners from his country. Swann is one of the few bowlers to take all 10 wickets in a single Test innings.

He is known for his special delivery called the “flying saucer ball”. Swann was the main spinner for England during his career.

He played 178 international matches across different formats. Swann took 410 wickets in total.

Harbhajan Singh is one of India’s best off-spin bowlers. He played international cricket from 1998 to 2016. His bowling was strong and aggressive. Harbhajan took 417 wickets in Test matches. This number places him fourth among Indian players in Test wickets, after Anil Kumble, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Kapil Dev.

In 2001, Harbhajan performed very well against Australia. He took 32 wickets in three matches. In Kolkata, he took 13 wickets in a single match. His bowling helped India win the series 2-1 after losing the first match.

Harbhajan was important to the Indian team not only because of his spin bowling but also for his confidence and fighting spirit during tough moments. Many young bowlers admire him and want to follow his path.

Harbhajan ranks among the best spin bowlers worldwide. He has the second-highest number of wickets for off-spinners in Test cricket. He became the first Indian bowler to take a hat-trick in Test matches. He was part of the Indian teams that won the 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 ODI World Cup.

Harbhajan took 413 wickets in 101 Tests, 259 wickets in 229 ODIs, and 25 wickets in 28 T20 Internationals for India.

Abdul Qadir was a famous spinner from Pakistan. Pakistan is known for fast bowlers, but Qadir was one of the best spin bowlers in the country. He used right-arm leg spin. He bowled different types of deliveries. These included leg-break, topspin, flipper, and googly. These deliveries helped him take many wickets. Fans liked his bowling style a lot.

Qadir was very skilled and had many ways to bowl spin. Many consider him one of the best spin bowlers in cricket history. He played 67 Test matches and 104 One Day International matches for Pakistan. He took 368 wickets in total in these formats.

After finishing his playing career, Qadir worked as the chief selector for the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Daniel Vettori played cricket for New Zealand from 1997 to 2015. He was one of the best left-arm spin bowlers in the world. Vettori started Test cricket at the age of 18 years and 10 days. He became the youngest spinner to reach 100 Test wickets by age 21.

Vettori took 362 wickets in Test matches. He holds the record for the most Test wickets by a New Zealand spinner. He also took 305 wickets in One Day Internationals and 38 wickets in T20 matches. His bowling was accurate and helped win many games.

In 2000, Vettori took 12 wickets in one Test match against Australia, one of his best performances. He also scored six centuries in Test cricket, helping the team with batting.

Vettori served as captain of New Zealand from 2007 to 2011. He is one of the few players in Test cricket history to take 300 wickets and score 3000 runs. Many young players in New Zealand look up to him.

He received the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award in 2012.

Ravichandran Ashwin is an important spinner for India. He plays mostly in Test matches. Ashwin ranks first in the ICC Test bowling list. He has helped India win many games with his bowling skills. Ashwin is smart and uses good plans to confuse batsmen.

Ashwin is 37 years old. He is on track to become a famous Indian bowler. He played 94 Tests, 116 ODIs, and 65 T20 games. Ashwin took 489 wickets in Tests, 152 in ODIs, and 72 in T20 matches. In the Indian Premier League (IPL), he took 171 wickets in 197 games. He still plays for India and is one of the oldest players in the Test team.

Ashwin uses many types of bowling. He bowls off break, leg break, slider, and carrom ball. In 2013, Ashwin took 29 wickets in a Test series against Australia. He earned the Man of the Series award 8 times in 79 Test matches.

In April 2022, Ashwin became the second off-spinner after Harbhajan Singh to take 150 wickets in the IPL. He reached this record in 37 matches, the fastest Indian to do so. The Indian government gave Ashwin the Arjuna Award in 2014 for his great career. He also became the third Indian to win the ICC Cricketer of the Year award.

Rashid Khan is from Afghanistan. He is one of the best spin bowlers in the world. Rashid is only 25 years old. He bowls with his right arm and spins the ball a lot. Many top batters have found it hard to play against him.

Rashid has set many records in a short time. He will be remembered as a great player after his career ends. He broke the record of Australian bowler Mitchell Starc. Rashid became the fastest and youngest bowler to take 100 wickets in One Day International (ODI) matches. He did this in just 44 games.

Rashid also took 100 wickets in T20 International (T20I) matches faster than anyone else. He did this in 53 games. Rashid played 5 Test matches, 103 ODIs, and 82 T20Is for Afghanistan. He also played 109 matches in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

He took 34 wickets in Tests, 183 wickets in ODIs, 130 wickets in T20Is, and 139 wickets in the IPL.