Prabath Jayasuriya has taken 50 wickets in seven Tests to claim the record for reaching the mark in fewer matches than any other spinner.
Sri Lanka spinner Prabath Jayasuriya smashed a 71-year-old record when he dismissed Ireland’s Paul Stirling to claim his 50th Test wicket on the final day of the second Test in Galle.
Jayasuriya hit the 50-wicket mark in just his seventh Test to snatch the record from West Indies’ Alf Valentine as the spinner to reach the milestone in the fewest matches.
The 31-year-old Jayasuriya has enjoyed a remarkable rise since a Test debut against Australia in July 2022, when he finished with the fourth-best debut match figures of 12/177.
Jayasuriya has taken five wickets in an innings six times including 5/174 in Ireland’s first innings of the second Test in Galle, and only needs a five-wicket haul in the second innings to mark 10 wickets in a match for a third time.
Valentine made an immediate impact following his debut in 1950 and was the leading wicket-taker with 33 scalps in four Tests as West Indies won a Test series in England for the first time.
The left-arm orthodox spinner then took his 50th wicket in the fourth Test of the West Indies tour of Australia in 1951/52, to achieve the feat in his eighth match and set a record that lasted for more the 71 years.
