Ben Stokes is leading England in the 2025-26 edition of the Ashes series in Australia, and on Day 2 of the fifth and final Test taking place at Sydney Cricket Ground, he entered his name in the record books by equalling Bob Willis’s record of taking the most wickets by an England Test captain.
Willis played 18 Tests as England captain from 1982 to 1984 and dismissed 77 batters, whereas Stokes, who is playing his 42nd Test as England captain these days in Sydney, also has 77 wickets to his credit now.
Most wickets as England Test captain
| PLAYER | SPAN | MATCHES | WICKETS | BEST FIGURES | 5-WKT HAULS |
| Ben Stokes | 2020-2026 | 42* | 77 | 5/23 | 2 |
| Bob Willis | 1982-1984 | 18 | 77 | 6/101 | 3 |
| Ray Illingworth | 1969-1973 | 31 | 51 | 5/70 | 1 |
| Gubby Allen | 1936-1948 | 11 | 42 | 7/80 | 4 |
| Johnny Douglas | 1911-1924 | 18 | 37 | 5/46 | 1 |
| Ian Botham | 1980-1981 | 12 | 35 | 4/77 | 0 |
| Andre Flintoff | 2006-2007 | 11 | 34 | 4/96 | 0 |
| Ted Dexter | 1961-1964 | 30 | 33 | 4/38 | 0 |
| Freddie Brown | 1949-1951 | 15 | 30 | 5/49 | 1 |
| Joe Root | 2017-2022 | 64 | 30 | 5/8 | 1 |
His 77th wicket in Tests as England captain came in the form of Marnus Labuschagne. Labuschagne was caught by Jacob Bethell after adding 48 runs to Australia’s total in their first innings during the third session of the second day’s play.
Stokes bowled a total of 27.4 overs for England in the first innings in Sydney and finished with figures of 2 for 95.
The world record for taking the most wickets in Tests as captain is in the name of legendary Pakistani cricketer Imran Khan. Imran played 48 Tests as Pakistan captain from 1982 to 1992 and dismissed 187 batters. Australia’s Pat Cummins is second on the list with 151 wickets in 38 Tests as captain.
Most wickets in Tests as captain
| PLAYER | COUNTRY | MATCHES | WICKETS | BEST FIGURES | 5-WKT HAULS |
| Imran Khan | Pakistan | 48 | 187 | 8/60 | 12 |
| Pat Cummins | Australia | 38 | 151 | 6/28 | 9 |
| Richie Benaud | Australia | 28 | 138 | 6/70 | 9 |
| Garry Sobers | West Indies | 39 | 117 | 6/73 | 3 |
| Daniel Vettori | New Zealand | 32 | 116 | 6/56 | 6 |
| Kapil Dev | India | 34 | 111 | 9/83 | 4 |
| Wasim Akram | Pakistan | 25 | 107 | 6/48 | 3 |
| Bishan Singh Bedi | India | 22 | 106 | 6/71 | 8 |
| Shaun Pollock | South Africa | 26 | 103 | 6/30 | 4 |
| Jason Holder | West Indies | 37 | 100 | 6/42 | 7 |
So far 10 cricketers have picked up more than 100 wickets in Tests as captain.
Stokes, who picked up a five-wicket haul in the first innings of the first 2025-26 Ashes Test played at Optus Stadium in Perth on November 21, 2025, will be a key player for England with the bat in their second innings.
He has failed to score even one century in nine innings played so far in the ongoing series, but in what could probably be his last Ashes innings in Australia, he would like to reach the triple-figure mark.