England featured in the first ever Test match, against Australia in 1877, and we have picked out the 10 greatest cricketers from their illustrious history.
10. Derek Underwood (England career: 1966-1982)
Widely regarded as England's greatest spin bowler, Kent stalwart Derek Underwood finished his Test career with 297 wickets from 86 appearances.
He was virtually unplayable on damp pitches, earning the nickname 'Deadly', and took 7-50 to seal one of England's most thrilling Ashes victories against Australia at The Oval in 1968.
9. Ben Stokes (2013 onwards)
England's current Test captain may well surge up this list of legends if he leads his side to a 2025/26 Ashes triumph in Australia.
Stokes has already produced a host of stunning performances with bat and ball, inspiring England's World Cup final win over New Zealand in July 2019 and scoring an extraordinary 135 not out in a one-wicket victory over Australia at Headingley later that summer.
8. Sir Len Hutton (1937-1955)
Despite missing five years of his prime career due to the Second World War, Yorkshire opener Len Hutton racked up almost 7,000 Test runs at an average of 56.67.
At the age of just 22, he made 364 against Australia at The Oval, setting a record for the highest individual Test score that would stand for almost 20 years.
7. Fred Trueman (1952-1965)
'Fiery' Fred Trueman was an outstanding paceman for England in the 1950s and 1960s and he became the first bowler to take 300 wickets in Test cricket.
His tally of 307 has since been eclipsed by Bob Willis, Ian Botham, Stuart Broad and James Anderson but Trueman's average (21.57) and strike-rate (a wicket every 49.43 balls) remain the best of any England player to take 200 Test scalps.
6. Joe Root (2012 onwards)
Only India superstar Sachin Tendulkar has scored more Test runs than Joe Root, who has enjoyed a prolific few years since giving up the captaincy in 2022.
At the end of the 2025 summer, Root averaged 51.29 in Test cricket and 49.33 in ODIs and, 13 years after making 73 in his debut innings against India in Nagpur, he remains ravenous for runs.
5. Wally Hammond (1927-1947)
Wally Hammond was known as one of the most stylish batsmen of his generation and his Test average of 58.45 puts him in the top 10 in that category.
A useful seam bowler and gifted fielder, Hammond showed his class with the bat all over the world, averaging more than 60 in Australia and South Africa and scoring 642 runs in just three innings in New Zealand.
4. Sir Jack Hobbs (1908-1930)
'The Master' has an unbeatable first-class record, scoring 197 centuries and almost 62,000 runs, and he remains the oldest player to register a Test century.
Hobbs's final Test ton came against Australia in Melbourne in 1929 at the age of 46 and he forged a superb opening partnership with Herbert Sutcliffe, who called him "quite the best batsman of my generation on all types of wickets".
3. Sir James Anderson (2003-2024)
Jimmy Anderson retired in 2024 as England's record Test wicket-taker and his tally of 704 is unlikely to be matched by any fast bowler.
Anderson's longevity, consistency and fitness marked him out as a special player. He was a masterful performer when the ball was moving around in home conditions but also starred in the 2010/11 Ashes series in Australia, playing all five matches and claiming 24 wickets.
2. WG Grace (1880-1899)
English sport's first superstar was WG Grace, the burly, bearded all-rounder who dominated cricket in the second half of the 19th century.
Grace had already been a first-class cricketer for 15 years by the time he made his Test debut, marking the occasion with 152 against Australia at The Oval in September 1880.
He was 50 years old when he captained England in his final Test in 1899, sharing an opening stand of 75 with CB Fry in the first innings, and he played an integral role in popularising professional cricket in England and beyond.
1. Sir Ian Botham (1977-1992)
English cricket fans have always loved larger-than-life all-rounders such as Grace, Stokes, Andrew Flintoff and, probably the greatest of them all, Ian Botham.
Beefy's legendary status was forged in the 1981 Ashes series. Having been stripped of the captaincy, he responded with a series of outrageous performances including a swashbuckling 149 at Headingley to power England to victory after they had hit in-play odds of 500-1.
One measure of Botham's greatness is the fact that he scored a century and took five wickets in an innings in a Test match on five occasions – only three other England players in the history of the game have achieved it even once.
