Listing fastest captains to win 10 Test matches
What's the story
South Africa's Test captain Temba Bavuma has made history by becoming the fastest captain in the world to win 10 Test matches. The achievement came on Sunday, November 16, when South Africa successfully defended a target of 124 runs against India in Kolkata. They bowled out the hosts for just 93 runs in their second innings at Eden Gardens. On this note, we list down the captains who took the fewest matches to complete 10 Test wins.
#1
Temba Bavuma - 11 matches
Bavuma, who has an impressive record as captain, tops this list as South Africa have won 10 out of their 11 Tests under his leadership. The veteran made his Test captaincy debut against the West Indies in Centurion in February 2023. Notably, captain Bavuma is yet to lose a Test, as the only match that didn't end in a win under his captaincy was against West Indies in Port of Spain last year. It was a drawn affair.
#2
Lindsay Hassett - 12 matches
Australia's Lindsay Hassett is one of the two names that held the top spot on the list before the aforementioned Kolkata Test. Having led the Aussies in the late 40s and early 50s, Hassett took just 12 games to complete 10 Test wins. He lost just one game in his first 12 Tests - against England. Overall, Hassett led the Aussies 24 times in Tests, recording 14 wins, four defeats, and six draws.
#3
Ben Stokes - 12 matches
Hassett shares the second spot on this list with England's current Test skipper Ben Stokes, who changed the fortunes of the team after taking over the command in mid 2022. His and head coach Brendon McCullum's new-found aggressive approach, also hailed as Bazball, saw England win 10 of their first 12 Tests under Stokes's captaincy. The Brits lost the other two games in this period - against West Indies and SA (both at home).