Most Wickets For Australia At MCG In Test Cricket

Aakash Saini∙ Updated: Dec 30 2024, 4:45 PM

Most Test wickets among Australians at the MCG [Source: AP Photos]Most Test wickets among Australians at the MCG [Source: AP Photos]

The hallowed arena of the gigantic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) seems to bring out the best of certain Australian bowlers. From iconic spells to match-winning efforts with the ball, the venue has proudly graced some of the greatest bowling icons of Australia over the past century-and-a-half. 

Here, we take a look at three Australian bowlers who have roared the most at the MCG in Test cricket.

3. Nathan Lyon - 50 wickets

Nathan Lyon [Source: @ICC/x]Nathan Lyon [Source: @ICC/x]

Legendary off-spinner Nathan Lyon became the latest entrant to complete 50 Test wickets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), doing so with his five-wicket match haul against India in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test. The 37-year-old deceived Ravindra Jadeja before getting rid of well-set Indian batters Washington Sundar and centurion Nitish Kumar Reddy; and added two more scalps in the decisive innings of the match on Day 5 to seal figures of 5-133.

Lyon made his MCG debut back in December 2011, i.e., mere months after making his Australian debut in Sri Lanka. Having played 14 matches at the iconic venue to date, the right-arm tweaker has racked up his 50 wickets at an impressive average of 31.58 and with a strike rate 59.94. Apart from picking up a match-winning five-fer at the MCG back during the 2013 Ashes Test against England, Nathan Lyon has also claimed three additional four-wicket hauls in this grand stadium.


2. Shane Warne - 56 wickets

Shane Warne [Source: @ICC/x]Shane Warne [Source: @ICC/x]

Australia’s perennial bowling icon, the late Shane Warne, snapped 56 of his 708 Test victims at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Having played for Victoria during his early years, the cricketer was well-acclimatized with the conditions of the venue by the time of making his Australian debut. Warne first graced his home ground as an Australian Test player during a match against West Indies in December 1992, i.e., nearly a year after his first appearance.

The then 23-year-old celebrated his homecoming with match-winning figures of 7-52 in the decisive innings to help Australia clinch a 139-run win and a 1-0 lead in the series. For collecting eight wickets across both innings, Shane Warne was fittingly adjudged the ‘Player of the Match’.

During the twilight of his career, Warne delivered another ‘Player of the Match’ performance in his final appearance at the venue, this time against England in the 2006 Ashes Test with a match-winning haul of 7-85. The cricketer picked up his 700th Test scalp in the process to bring curtains to his glorious 15-year career.

Overall, Shane Warne’s MCG numbers read 56 wickets in 21 innings spanning 11 Tests at an average of 22.92, and with a strike rate of 56.03, both slightly better than his career stats.

1. Dennis Lillee - 82 wickets

Dennis Lillee [Source: @ICC/x]Dennis Lillee [Source: @ICC/x]

Fearsome fast bowler Dennis Lillee played just 14 Tests at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, but picked up 82 wickets at the venue at an exceptional average of 21.92. Lillee also picked up his career-best figures of 7-83 at the iconic stadium, doing so during the ‘Boxing Day Test’ match from 1981 against a visiting West Indies team.

The speedster shattered West Indies’ batting ambitions in their first innings by grinding out for 26.3 overs to yield seven wickets, which included the prized-scalps of Desmond Haynes and Sir Vivian Richards. With three more wickets in the second innings, Lillee engineered Australia’s emphatic 58-run win to go 1-0 up in the series.

Overall, Dennis Lillee’s haul of 82 wickets at the MCG makes up for nearly a fourth of his overall career collection, and at a much better average and strike rate of 21.92 and 46.74 respectively.