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Most Player-Of-The-Match Awards In Tests Ft. Jacques Kallis, Sachin Tendulkar

Jatin

Jacques Kallis and Sachin Tendulkar [Source: @ImTanujSingh, @CrickeTendulkar/x.com]Jacques Kallis and Sachin Tendulkar [Source: @ImTanujSingh, @CrickeTendulkar/x.com]

There is something about the red-ball grind that separates men from legends. It’s not just about big hundreds or five-fers; it’s about turning up when it matters most and stealing the show when the odds are stacked.

Some players are built for the occasion and in Test cricket, the toughest format of them all, these names kept grabbing the mic, time and time again.

Here’s a look at the top five in the business when it comes to most Player-of-the-Match awards in Test cricket.

5. Curtly Ambrose, Steve Waugh and Sachin Tendulkar: 14 Awards

When it comes to leaving a mark on a Test match, these three legends made it a habit. Sir Curtly Ambrose, the man who made batters hop, duck and pray, won 14 MOTM awards in just 98 Tests. A monster with the ball and a menace with that poker face.

Steve Waugh was built different. The original ice-man of Aussie cricket, leading from the front, grinding oppositions down with grit and steel nerves. 14 match awards in 168 games and most of them came when Australia needed a saviour.

Then there’s the Master Blaster himself: Sachin Tendulkar. With 200 Tests under his belt, Tendulkar had a knack for standing tall when it mattered. 14 awards don’t even tell the full story but it shows just how often he lit up the big stage.

4. Ricky Ponting and Kumar Sangakkara: 16 Awards

You talk about batting dynamos and these two are always in the conversation. Ricky Ponting, Australia’s legendary leader, had a habit of punching holes in oppositions with daddy hundreds. Whether it was the Ashes or a subcontinental dustbowl, Punter turned up. 16 match awards in 168 Tests says it all.

Kumar Sangakkara was poetry in whites. Every time Sri Lanka needed class over chaos, Sanga delivered. He was all wrists, timing and temperament. 134 Tests. 16 times the gamechanger. That tells you something about how consistently he pulled Sri Lanka out of the fire.

3. Shane Warne and Wasim Akram: 17 Awards

Shane Warne didn’t just bowl leg-spin. He rewrote how it was played. Big turn, bigger personality. With 17 Player-of-the-Match awards in 145 Tests, Warnie often spun games back in Australia’s favour from nowhere.

On the other hand, Wasim Akram was a fast-bowling genius. Reverse swing, new ball, old ball, he made the ball talk. In 104 Tests, 17 MOTMs. He wasn’t just deadly, he was decisive. And that left-arm magic? Unplayable on his day.

2. Muttiah Muralitharan: 19 Awards

Muttiah Muralitharan didn’t just take wickets, he swallowed teams whole. 800 Test scalps, sure. But 19 Player-of-the-Match performances in 133 Tests? That is next-level.

What made Murali special was how he kept going, over after over, spell after spell. He broke records, backs and batting orders. And he did it all with a smile that hid a ruthless mindset. Batters weren’t safe when Murali had the ball in hand.

1. Jacques Kallis: 23 Awards

Top of the tree? The man who did it all: Jacques Kallis. He wasn’t just South Africa’s backbone, he was their beating heart. 166 Tests, 23 match awards. That is no fluke. That is domination.

With the bat, he could bat a team to safety or power them to glory. With the ball, he could break partnerships just when the game was drifting. He wasn’t flashy; he was effective. Kallis didn’t chase headlines. He earned them. Quietly. Consistently. Brutally.