Each cricketing nation has its own recipe for winning matches in the Test arena. While some have formidable batting line-ups courtesy some brilliant stroke players who impose pressure by putting up huge totals on the board, others rely on their potent pace attack to run through opponents.

An interesting dimension to the game of cricket has been spin bowling which has played a pivotal role in carving out victories for Test nations, especially on the turning tracks of the sub-continent. While the sub-continent teams are known to produce some of finest exponents of this craft, other nations have had their share of spin greats who have created a place among the legends of the sport.

Spin bowling has always complimented pace and adds that cutting edge to a team’s bowling lineup. Be it Test cricket or the limited overs format, spinners have tasted enormous success for their teams by turning around matches in their favor.

So let us analyze the top test nations who have produced some of the finest spinners the game has seen over its long history.

1. India

India has had a great tradition of spin bowling since its inception into test cricket. Subhash Gupte was India’s first world class spinner in the test arena. Gupte scalped 149 wickets in just 36 test matches which was indeed creditable for a spinner in those times. Test all-rounder Vinoo Mankad was another effective spinner in the 50s.

The spin quartet of Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar and Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan would go down as the most potent spin bowling attack in Test cricket. All these great spinners were different in their own ways but combined brilliantly to form a deadly spin attack.

While Bedi deceived the best with his control in flight and loop, Prasanna the classical leg spinner was a master of his craft. Chandrasekhar who bowled with an awkward action was tough to read off his hands. Maninder Singh, Dilip Doshi and Shivlal Yadav and Ravi Shastri were the lead spinners for India in the 80s.

Anil Kumble was perhaps India’s greatest match winner with the ball in the 90s. Kumble, not a big turner of the ball, tricked the best batsmen with his googlies and flippers which he bowled at a deceptively quick pace. Kumble more often than not ran through visiting sides on the slow and turning tracks of the subcontinent and made the Indian team an impregnable fortress at home.

He created history by becoming only the second bowler in test history to pick up 10 wickets in an innings against arch rivals Pakistan at the Feroz Shah Stadium, New Delhi. Meanwhile, Venkatpathy Raju and Rajesh Chauhan were decent spinners who provided Kumble with the ideal bowling support all through the 90s.

Narendra Hirwani promised a lot with his sensational debut against the Windies at home but faded away into wilderness pretty soon.

With the turn of the century, Harbhajan Singh became India’s best off spinner in Test cricket. Bhajji extracts natural bounce and turn owing to the over spin he gets on his deliveries. “The Turbanator” has the knack of running through oppositions when he gets his act going.

Bhajji has been very effective in ODIs too, where he has stemmed the flow of runs by bowling a tight channel.

Ravichandran Ashwin has been the ace spinner for India in the Dhoni Era. For someone who had been written off by many critics as a T20 specialist, courtesy his stupendous showing in the IPL, Ashwin has come a long way by becoming the leading off-spinner in the world.

Meanwhile, spinners Pragyan Ojha and Ravinder Jadeja have been potent in sub-continent conditions. Amit Mishra has been India’s best leg spinner who adds a little bit of variety to India’s spin attack on home conditions.

The Indians spinners who did well in the ODI arena were Arshad Ayub, Nikhil Chopra, Sairaj Bahutule, Murali Kartik, Sunil Joshi, Piyush Chawla and Romesh Powar. The Indian spin attack has been well complimented by Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Yusuf Pathan, Suresh Raina and Aksar Patel who filled in as part timers with their slow arm orthodox bowling.

 Indian Spinners with 100+ Wickets in Test Cricket

2. Australia

The Australian side, much known for their exploits in seam bowling, have produced some of the greatest spinners who have significantly contributed to their success in test cricket. Hugh Trumble was the first great spinner to come out of Australia in the pre-war era. Clarrie Grimmett and Bill O’Reilly were the spin twins for the Aussies all through the 20s and 30s.

Grimmett was credited with developing the flipper, a delivery which became a lethal weapon for most of the leading spinners. Richie Benaud, much acclaimed for his commentary stint with Channel Nine was their frontline spinner in the 60s. In the 70s, Ashley Mallet and Bruce Yardley served the Aussies well in the spin department.

The legendary Shane Warne should be credited for being the greatest leg spinner to ever grace the game. Warne was instrumental in reviving the art of leg spin bowling, which seemed done and dusted at the fag end of the 80s. Warne was a master of deceiving the best with his natural drift and turn.

Warne’s leg-spinners turned many a miles and bamboozled top class batsmen. Warne had an ideal partner in Stuart MacGill who turned the ball square on the flattest of pitches. Together they formed a deadly spin duo which rattled out the best of oppositions in test matches Down Under.

In the 90s, Warne was well supported by Colin Miller and Gavin Robertson, both of whom had successful tours of the sub-continent.

Post Shane Warne’s retirement, Brad Hogg took over the mantle of spin bowling for the Aussies. Hogg a left-arm wrist spinner was known to fox the batsman with his deceptive flight and subtle variations. Hogg played an instrumental role as the lead spinner in Australia’s succesful 2003 and 2007 World cup campaigns.

In the last decade or so, Nathan Lyon has been Australia’s frontline test spinner. Lyon is already Australia's leading wicket taking off spinner in test cricket and has a lot more to offer. Budding spinner Adam Zampa, who has drawn comparisons with spin legend Shane Warne has emerged as the next big spin bowling talent from Down Under.

Meanwhile Nathan Hauritz, Andrew Symonds, Xavier Doherty, Steven Smith and Glen Maxwell have been effective spinners in the limited overs format.

Australian Spinners with 100+ Test Wickets

3. Pakistan

Pakistan known for producing some of the greatest fast bowlers have been equal to the task in churning out world class spinners. Abdur Qadir, a leading spinners in the 80s added the spinning dimension to their much famed pace attack. Qadir referred to the “Old Fox”, bamboozled the top batsmen with his deceptive googly. Qadir was well supported by the left arm spinner Iqbal Qasim who was a fine spinner in his own merit.

In the 90s, Mushtaq Ahmed became Pakistan’s frontline spinner. Mushtaq had an uncanny action which made him difficult to read off his hand. Mushtaq was at his best on bouncy tracks where he got a lot of purchase of the surface. Meanwhile off spinner Saqlain Mushtaq played the perfect foil to Mushtaq Ahmed in the late 90s. Saqlain was a master at variations and is rightfully credited for inventing the “Doosra”, the off-spinners delivery that turns the other way. In limited overs cricket, Saqlain was a natural wicket taker in the slog overs and choked the flow of runs in the death overs.

Danish Kaneria has been a very underrated spinner considering his exploits at the test level. Kaneria led the spin attack for Pakistan with a lot of success in the early part of the 2000s and his 261 test scalps, the most by a Pakistani spinner is testimony to the same.

Saeed Ajmal has been one of the best off spinner in the last decade or so. Ajmal has been instrumental in winning Pakistan many matches on the turning tracks of UAE, which has become their second home. Ajmal bowls a flat trajectory, thereby hurrying up the batsmen by mixing up his deliveries.

Ajmal has been well partnered by left arm spinner Abdul Rehman who himself has produced some match winnings spells in test cricket. Yasir Shah seems to be the latest spinning sensation to come out of Pakistan. Shah an attacking spinner has already leapfrogged to 86 wickets in just 13 test matches.

Meanwhile leg spinner Shahid Afridi became a very effective limited overs spinner in the later half of his career scalping 395 one day international wickets. Pakistan also had noteworthy spinners in Tauseef Ahmed, Arshad Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Aamir Sohail and Shoiab Malik who did well in the limited overs format.

Pakistan Spinners with 100+ Wickets in Test Cricket