Shane Keith Warne ended the Ashes 2005 with a tally of 40 wickets against his name.
Warne thus provided only the eighth instance of a player taking 40 wickets in a series, and became the third man to be on the losing side whilst doing so.
Funnily enough, the others were both Australians, also in Ashes contests - Terry Alderman in England in 1981 and Rodney Hogg in Australia in 1978-79.
The only other men to take 40 wickets in a 5-Test series are Barnes, Laker and Grimmett.
The following table has the details:
| Bowler | Wkts | Tests | For | Vs | Season | Ave | 5WI | 10WM | SR | ER |
| SF Barnes | 49 | 4 | Eng | SA * | 1913-14 | 10.94 | 7 | 3 | 27.67 | 39.53 |
| JC Laker | 46 | 5 | Eng* | Aus | 1956 | 9.61 | 4 | 2 | 37.02 | 25.95 |
| CV Grimmett | 44 | 5 | Aus | SA * | 1935-36 | 14.59 | 5 | 3 | 47.20 | 30.91 |
| TM Alderman | 42 | 6 | Aus | Eng* | 1981 | 21.26 | 4 | 0 | 46.43 | 45.79 |
| RM Hogg | 41 | 6 | Aus* | Eng | 1978-79 | 12.85 | 5 | 2 | 42.44 | 30.29 |
| TM Alderman | 41 | 6 | Aus | Eng* | 1989 | 17.37 | 6 | 1 | 39.41 | 44.06 |
| Imran Khan | 40 | 6 | Pak* | Ind | 1982-83 | 13.95 | 4 | 2 | 33.48 | 41.67 |
| SK Warne | 40 | 5 | Aus | Eng* | 2005 | 19.92 | 3 | 2 | 37.92 | 52.53 |
More from rediff