Zaheer Khan has 516 wickets across Tests, ODIs and T20s in the CricMind database: 218 in Tests, 180 in ODIs and 118 in T20s. He passed 100 wickets in all three formats, and he did it as a left-arm seamer leading the attack for India and three IPL franchises. His full file sits on his player page.
One note before the numbers. The CricMind database is built from the Cricsheet ball-by-ball archive, which covers the matches for which full ball-by-ball records exist. Zaheer's career began before that coverage was complete, so his official career totals are higher than the figures below. Everything here comes from the matches in the archive: 60 Tests, 129 ODIs and 114 T20s.
Career at a glance
| Format | Mat | Runs | Avg | SR | HS | 100s | Wkts | Bowl Avg | Econ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Test | 60 | 930 | 13.10 | 51.3 | 75 | 0 | 218 | 31.72 | 3.26 |
| ODI | 129 | 531 | 12.35 | 71.3 | 34 | 0 | 180 | 30.56 | 5.01 |
| T20 | 114 | 130 | 8.13 | 86.1 | 23 | 0 | 118 | 26.90 | 7.57 |
| Total | 303 | 1,591 | — | — | 75 | 0 | 516 | — | — |
The T20 row includes his IPL cricket for Delhi Daredevils, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians as well as T20 internationals for India. His ODI row includes matches for the Asia XI.
The leader of an attack
Zaheer's numbers are those of a bowler who bowled the hard overs and bowled a lot of them. In the archive he has bowled in all 129 of his ODIs and all 114 of his T20s, and in 108 Test innings across 60 Tests. That is a bowler his captains turned to every time.
The format-by-format bowling:
- Tests: 218 wickets at 31.72, economy 3.26, a wicket every 58.3 balls. He bowled 12,714 balls in Tests, about 2,119 overs.
- ODIs: 180 wickets at 30.56, economy 5.01, a wicket every 36.6 balls.
- T20s: 118 wickets at 26.90, economy 7.57, a wicket every 21.3 balls.
His bowling averages sit close together across all three formats, between 26.90 and 31.72. That consistency is unusual. Most fast bowlers have a clear best format. Zaheer's record suggests a bowler whose skills, swing with the new ball and reverse swing with the old one, carried across every length of game.
Test cricket: the long spells
The Test record is the heaviest part of the file. Two hundred and eighteen wickets in 60 Tests is a little over 3.6 wickets per match, and an economy of 3.26 means he took them without letting the scoring rate run away. Across more than 2,100 overs, that is a lot of work from a fast bowler.
He also contributed with the bat in Tests more than his average of 13.10 suggests. He scored 930 runs with three fifties and a highest score of 75, and he hit 22 sixes. For a No. 9 or No. 10, a Test fifty is runs the specialist batters did not have to find.
ODIs: new ball and death overs
In 129 ODIs in the archive, Zaheer took 180 wickets at 30.56. The key number is the strike rate: a wicket every 36.6 balls, or about one every six overs. An ODI bowler who takes a wicket every six overs and goes at around five an over across nearly 1,100 overs is doing the two jobs a strike bowler is picked for. He breaks partnerships early, and he can still be trusted when the innings speeds up.
With the bat in ODIs he made 531 runs at a strike rate of 71.3, with a top score of 34.
T20 and the IPL years
Zaheer's T20 career runs through the first decade of the IPL. In the archive he played for three franchises:
- Delhi Daredevils, the franchise that became Delhi Capitals
- [Royal Challengers Bangalore](/teams/royal-challengers-bangalore)
- [Mumbai Indians](/teams/mumbai-indians)
Across 114 T20 matches, including his internationals for India, he took 118 wickets at 26.90 with an economy of 7.57. That economy is notably tight for a seamer who bowled at the start and the end of T20 innings, the two phases where batters attack hardest. His T20 bowling average is the best of his three formats, and his final T20 in the archive is dated 14 May 2017.
His batting in T20s was a footnote: 130 runs in 30 innings, with a top score of 23. In 84 of his 114 T20 matches he did not bat at all.
What the numbers show
Taken together, the record describes a clear kind of cricketer:
- A strike bowler in every format. 100-plus wickets in Tests, ODIs and T20s within the archive alone.
- Remarkably consistent. Bowling averages of 31.72, 30.56 and 26.90 across three very different formats.
- A heavy workload. More than 3,600 overs across formats in the archive, with a bowl in every ODI and T20 he played.
- A useful tail-ender in Tests. Three Test fifties and a top score of 75.
To see where his wicket totals rank among the great bowlers, browse the all-time records, or open his full career profile.
FAQ
How many wickets did Zaheer Khan take?
In the CricMind database, which is built from the Cricsheet ball-by-ball archive, Zaheer Khan has 218 Test wickets, 180 ODI wickets and 118 T20 wickets, a total of 516. His official career totals are higher because some of his early matches pre-date full ball-by-ball coverage.
Which IPL teams did Zaheer Khan play for?
He played for Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals), Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians. Across his T20 matches in the archive he took 118 wickets at an average of 26.90 and an economy of 7.57.
What was Zaheer Khan's highest score?
His highest score was 75 in Test cricket, one of three Test fifties. His best ODI score in the archive is 34 and his best T20 score is 23.
What was Zaheer Khan's best format?
His bowling was strong in all three. His best bowling average came in T20s (26.90), his best economy in Tests (3.26), and his largest wicket tally in Tests (218 in 60 matches).