Graham Onions retired back in 2020, and five years on nobody has got anywhere near his tally of wickets in County Championship Division One. But the chasing pack has changed shape completely. Kyle Abbott has quietly closed to within touching distance at the top, Simon Harmer has rocketed up the list, and Keith Barker is still adding to his total heading into the 2026 season. Here’s the full and properly updated top ten, and the story behind every name on it.
County Championship Division One All Time Wicket Takers
Before anything else, here’s the list as it stands right now. Onions still leads by some distance, but three bowlers who barely featured on this list a few years ago have forced their way into the top five.
| Rank | Player | County | Span | Matches | Wickets | Best Bowling | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Graham Onions | Durham, Lancashire | 2006–2018 | 121 | 519 | 9/67 | 24.33 |
| 2 | Kyle Abbott | Hampshire | 2017–2026 | 106* | 452 | 9/40 | 19.13 |
| 3 | Simon Harmer | Essex | 2017–2026 | 104 | 451 | 9/95 | 24.55 |
| 4 | Keith Barker | Hampshire, Warwickshire | 2009–2026 | 141 | 439 | 6/27 | 26.41 |
| 5 | Craig Overton | Somerset | 2012–2026 | 129* | 419 | 7/57 | 25.57 |
| 6 | Jeetan Patel | Warwickshire | 2009–2019 | 110 | 417 | 8/36 | 26.56 |
| 7 | Ryan Sidebottom | Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire | 2005–2017 | 113 | 413 | 7/37 | 21.73 |
| 8 | Adil Rashid | Yorkshire | 2006–2017 | 128 | 395 | 7/107 | 33.77 |
| 9 | Rikki Clarke | Surrey, Warwickshire | 2005–2019 | 179 | 394 | 7/55 | 28.66 |
| 10 | Jamie Porter | Essex | 2017–2026 | 99* | 393 | 7/41 | 21.87 |
An asterisk denotes a bowler who is still active and adding to his total.
(Source: ECB)
Two names who used to sit inside this top ten, Jack Brooks and Steven Patterson, have since been overtaken. That’s the nature of a list like this. So let’s go through it properly, starting from the bottom.
10. Jamie Porter Has Been Essex’s Quiet Constant
Porter doesn’t get talked about outside Chelmsford anywhere near as much as his numbers deserve. He’s built his 393 wickets on relentless line and length rather than raw pace, and an average of 21.87 tells you how hard he is to score off. He’s still playing and climbing this list every season.
9. Rikki Clarke Won Titles With Bat and Ball at Two Counties
Clarke’s 394 wickets came across a 14 year career split between Surrey and Warwickshire, and his 6’4 frame gave him natural bounce that troubled county batters for the best part of two decades. He was part of Division One winning sides at both clubs, contributing plenty with the bat as well as the ball.
8. Adil Rashid Proved Leg Spin Can Thrive in England
Most spin bowling success in county cricket comes from off spin, but Rashid built his 395 wickets with the leg break and a googly that plenty of batters simply couldn’t read. He’s known more for his white ball career with England these days, but he also played 19 Test matches, and his best figures of 7/107 came for Yorkshire.
7. Ryan Sidebottom Made Overcast Days Miserable for Batters
Left arm swing at its best, and Sidebottom’s 413 wickets came from an ability to move the ball both ways whenever the clouds rolled in. He played for both Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire, one of a small number of bowlers on this list to win the County Championship with two different counties.
6. Jeetan Patel Ran Warwickshire’s Attack From the Front
Patel’s 417 wickets came from smart, patient off spin rather than raw turn, and he built pressure through long, economical spells that wore batting line ups down over a full day. Warwickshire trusted him enough to make him captain at Edgbaston despite his overseas status, and he’s now England’s spin bowling coach.
5. Craig Overton Has Been Somerset’s Workhorse for Over a Decade
Overton has taken 419 wickets since making his debut back in 2012, and he’s still adding to that total. He’s earned England Test caps along the way, but Somerset have relied on him as a genuine new ball threat at Taunton season after season, and his best figures of 7/57 show what he’s capable of on his day.
4. Keith Barker Keeps Proving He’s One of the Best Going
Barker’s total has jumped from 428 to 439 since he was last checked in on, and he shows no sign of slowing down. The left arm seamer made his name at Warwickshire before moving to Hampshire, where the Ageas Bowl’s swinging conditions have suited him perfectly. Before cricket took over, he was on Blackburn Rovers’ books as a striker and won an England under 19 football cap.
3. Simon Harmer Has Been Essex’s Match Winner Season After Season
Harmer’s rise up this list is the standout story here. He’s gone from 377 wickets to 451 in a few short years, and his off spin has been the difference in multiple Essex title wins. He took an extraordinary 29 five wicket hauls across his time at the club, and in 2019 he topped the national wicket charts with 83 for the season.
2. Kyle Abbott Has Been Relentless Since Arriving at Hampshire
Abbott joined Hampshire in 2017 and has barely stopped taking wickets since. His 452 wickets have come at an average of 19.13, the best of anyone in the entire top ten, and his best figures of 9/40 show just how destructive he can be with the new ball in English conditions. If he keeps this rate up, Onions’ record won’t be safe forever.
1. Graham Onions Still Stands Alone at the Top
Onions built his reputation as one of the most dangerous fast bowlers in the country during his time with Durham and Lancashire, finishing with 519 wickets before retiring in 2020. Injuries cost him a longer England career, but in 2009 he was the country’s leading Test wicket taker. Nobody in Division One has ever taken more.
(Source: ESPNcricinfo)
Where this list goes next depends heavily on how the current season shapes up. Anyone following the County Championship Division One 2026 points table will already know Abbott and Harmer are still bowling plenty of overs, and both have a genuine shot at closing the gap on Onions before their careers wind down. For a full breakdown of who’s playing for who this year, the County Championship Division One 2026 full squads list is worth a look too.
Onions Leads, But Abbott and Harmer Are Closing the Gap Fast
Graham Onions’ 519 wickets have stood untouched for years, but this list looks very different to how it did even a couple of seasons back. Kyle Abbott and Simon Harmer have both climbed into the top three, and Keith Barker and Craig Overton are still active and adding to their totals. Anyone wanting the bigger picture on how these counties have fared historically can check the full County Championship winners list from 1890 to 2026, but on the bowling front, this is a race worth watching closely over the next few seasons.
