Tallest cricketer in the world: Data-led guide to giants

Stand down the boundary and watch a two-metre quick charging in: the seam whirs, the release point is near the sight screen, and the ball seems to steepen as it travels, rearing into the splice with a hiss. Height in cricket is theatre and physics wrapped into one—bounce that bolts, length that suddenly becomes awkward, a yorker that arrives from a higher angle and buries itself deeper into the base of the stump. Over decades of Test and T20 cricket, the game’s skyline has been defined by a handful of outliers: men and women whose reach, release and leverage alter the geometry of batting.

This is a comprehensive, carefully sourced look at the tallest cricketer in the world, the tallest cricketers ever, and the tallest active professionals across formats and leagues. It’s written from a press box vantage point, but grounded in the mundane diligence of measurement—heights in centimetres and in feet/inches, cross-checked against ESPNcricinfo and official team bios, with discrepancies noted where they commonly crop up. You’ll find a definitive top 25, specialist breakouts by role and league, overlooked tall profiles in women’s cricket, and a clear-eyed explainer on what height really does for a bowler’s craft.

Quick answer: the tallest cricketer ever

Mohammad Irfan of Pakistan is commonly cited as the tallest cricketer in the world and the tallest cricketer ever. He is listed at 216 cm (7 ft 1 in), left-arm fast. That listing appears on his ESPNcricinfo profile and has been consistently repeated by team and league profiles whenever he has featured in domestic T20 tournaments.

He isn’t merely tall on a team sheet; he looks it in every frame. Irfan’s release point is towering, his good length climbs awkwardly even on docile pitches, and his yorker angle forces batters to recalibrate their pickup zones. He remains the sport’s most obvious outlier.

Tallest cricketers ever: the definitive top 25 list

Note on sources and consistency: Player heights vary across publications. The figures below reflect what is most commonly listed by ESPNcricinfo and official board/team media guides. Where multiple listings exist, the majority value is used.

Rank	Player	Height (cm/ft-in)	Country	Primary role	Notable teams/formats
1	Mohammad Irfan	216 cm / 7 ft 1 in	Pakistan	Left-arm fast	Pakistan, PSL, domestic T20
2	Will Jefferson	208 cm / 6 ft 10 in	England	Right-hand batter	Essex, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire
3	Marco Jansen	206 cm / 6 ft 9 in	South Africa	Left-arm fast	South Africa, SA20, global T20
4	Billy Stanlake	204 cm / 6 ft 8.5 in	Australia	Right-arm fast	Australia, BBL, IPL
5	Boyd Rankin	204 cm / 6 ft 8 in	Ireland/England	Right-arm fast-medium	Ireland, England, county
6	Joel Garner	203 cm / 6 ft 8 in	West Indies	Right-arm fast	West Indies, county
7	Bruce Reid	203 cm / 6 ft 8 in	Australia	Left-arm fast-medium	Australia
8	Peter George	203 cm / 6 ft 8 in	Australia	Right-arm fast-medium	Australia, state cricket
9	Cameron Cuffy	203 cm / 6 ft 8 in	West Indies	Right-arm fast-medium	West Indies
10	Kyle Jamieson	203 cm / 6 ft 8 in	New Zealand	Right-arm fast	New Zealand, IPL
11	Blessing Muzarabani	203 cm / 6 ft 8 in	Zimbabwe	Right-arm fast	Zimbabwe, franchise T20
12	Sulieman Benn	201 cm / 6 ft 7 in	West Indies	Left-arm orthodox spin	West Indies, CPL
13	Jason Holder	201 cm / 6 ft 7 in	West Indies	All-rounder, RFM	West Indies, IPL, CPL
14	Chris Tremlett	201 cm / 6 ft 7 in	England	Right-arm fast-medium	England
15	Steven Finn	201 cm / 6 ft 7 in	England	Right-arm fast	England, county
16	Reece Topley	201 cm / 6 ft 7 in	England	Left-arm fast-medium	England, The Hundred, IPL
17	Binura Fernando	200 cm / 6 ft 7 in	Sri Lanka	Left-arm fast-medium	Sri Lanka, LPL
18	Peter Fulton	198 cm / 6 ft 6 in	New Zealand	Right-hand batter	New Zealand
19	Jacob Oram	198 cm / 6 ft 6 in	New Zealand	All-rounder, RFM	New Zealand
20	Tom Moody	198 cm / 6 ft 6 in	Australia	All-rounder, RM	Australia
21	Cameron Green	198 cm / 6 ft 6 in	Australia	All-rounder, RF	Australia, IPL
22	Courtney Walsh	198 cm / 6 ft 6 in	West Indies	Right-arm fast	West Indies
23	Shaheen Shah Afridi	197 cm / 6 ft 6 in (listed)	Pakistan	Left-arm fast	Pakistan, PSL, global T20
24	Rahkeem Cornwall	196 cm / 6 ft 5 in	West Indies	Right-arm off spin	West Indies, CPL
25	Morne Morkel	196 cm / 6 ft 5 in	South Africa	Right-arm fast	South Africa

A few quick notes that matter to the purist:

Will Jefferson never played international cricket, but his listing belongs in a global ranking. You didn’t imagine that Essex opener peering over the slips like a basketball centre.
The West Indian lineage is unmistakable: Garner, Walsh, Ambrose (just outside this top-25 cut at 201 cm), Holder, Benn, Cornwall. The Caribbean has long embraced height as a weapon, and the numbers show it.
Binura Fernando is a frequent omission in generic lists. He shouldn’t be—two metres of left-arm in-swing is a substantial league weapon in Sri Lanka.
Shaheen’s listed height oscillates between 197 and 198 cm depending on the source. Either way, he is one of the tallest left-arm quicks to lead a national attack.

Tallest active cricketers right now

Active status here refers to players who have appeared in top-level professional cricket (international or major domestic leagues) in the recent cycle. Heights are the most commonly cited listings.

Mohammad Irfan — 216 cm — Pakistan — Left-arm fast — T20 specialist availability varies
Marco Jansen — 206 cm — South Africa — Left-arm fast — SA20, international
Billy Stanlake — 204 cm — Australia — Right-arm fast — BBL
Kyle Jamieson — 203 cm — New Zealand — Right-arm fast — International, IPL stints
Blessing Muzarabani — 203 cm — Zimbabwe — Right-arm fast — International, franchise T20
Jason Holder — 201 cm — West Indies — All-rounder — International, IPL, CPL
Reece Topley — 201 cm — England — Left-arm fast-medium — International, The Hundred, IPL
Binura Fernando — 200 cm — Sri Lanka — Left-arm fast-medium — LPL, international squad involvement
Cameron Green — 198 cm — Australia — All-rounder — International, IPL

Peter Fulton is retired; Jacob Oram and Tom Moody are coaching/retired; Chris Tremlett and Steven Finn have moved to media/retired roles. They are listed in the all-time table above for historical completeness.

Alzarri Joseph — 196 cm — West Indies — Right-arm fast — International, IPL/CPL
Oshane Thomas — 196 cm — West Indies — Right-arm fast — CPL
Shaheen Shah Afridi — 197 cm — Pakistan — Left-arm fast — International, PSL
Rahkeem Cornwall — 196 cm — West Indies — Right-arm off spin — CPL, international fringe
Richard Ngarava — commonly listed around 196 cm — Zimbabwe — Left-arm fast-medium — International

The tallest cricketer in the world across roles

Tallest fast bowlers

Mohammad Irfan — 216 cm — Left-arm fast — Pakistan
Marco Jansen — 206 cm — Left-arm fast — South Africa
Billy Stanlake — 204 cm — Right-arm fast — Australia
Boyd Rankin — 204 cm — Right-arm fast-medium — Ireland/England
Joel Garner — 203 cm — Right-arm fast — West Indies
Bruce Reid — 203 cm — Left-arm fast-medium — Australia
Kyle Jamieson — 203 cm — Right-arm fast — New Zealand
Blessing Muzarabani — 203 cm — Right-arm fast — Zimbabwe
Jason Holder — 201 cm — RFM — West Indies (all-rounder)
Reece Topley — 201 cm — Left-arm fast-medium — England
Steven Finn — 201 cm — Right-arm fast — England
Chris Tremlett — 201 cm — Right-arm fast-medium — England

Tallest all-rounders

Jason Holder — 201 cm — seam-bowling all-rounder — West Indies
Cameron Green — 198 cm — seam-bowling all-rounder — Australia
Jacob Oram — 198 cm — seam-bowling all-rounder — New Zealand
Tom Moody — 198 cm — seam-bowling all-rounder — Australia
Shaheen Shah Afridi — 197 cm — bowling all-rounder in white-ball terms — Pakistan

Tallest batsmen

Will Jefferson — 208 cm — England domestic
Peter Fulton — 198 cm — New Zealand
Tom Moody — 198 cm — Australia
Cameron Green — 198 cm — Australia
Alex Hales — 196 cm — England
Kevin Pietersen — commonly listed around 193 cm — England

Tallest spin bowlers

Sulieman Benn — 201 cm — Left-arm orthodox — West Indies
Rahkeem Cornwall — 196 cm — Off spin — West Indies
Daniel Vettori — commonly listed near 191 cm — Left-arm orthodox — New Zealand
Akeal Hosein — around 183 cm — Left-arm orthodox — West Indies (not among the absolute tallest but tall for a spinner)

Tallest wicketkeepers

Pure wicketkeepers are rarely skyscraper tall because crouching for long spells favours compact builds. Still, a few stand out.

Kate Cross and Freya Davies, who appear in the women’s section below, are bowlers not keepers; among men, taller keepers are less common. Regular male keepers who edge tall include:
Ben Foakes — around 183–185 cm — England
Tom Blundell — around 180+ cm — New Zealand
Matt Renshaw has kept in domestic cricket but is primarily a top-order batter; he stands approximately 196 cm and is an outlier when used with the gloves.

Tallest cricketer by league

IPL

Marco Jansen — 206 cm — has featured in the IPL and is the tallest to appear in the league.
Billy Stanlake — 204 cm — featured for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Kyle Jamieson — 203 cm — contracted stint.
Jason Holder — 201 cm — multi-franchise presence.
Reece Topley — 201 cm — contracted and played for Royal Challengers Bangalore.

The IPL’s tallest cricketer tag has shifted among these names depending on the season’s squad lists, but Jansen sets the high-water mark.

PSL

Mohammad Irfan — 216 cm — the tallest player to feature in the Pakistan Super League.
Shaheen Shah Afridi — 197 cm — a leading left-arm quick and captain.
Mohammad Irfan Jr — around 193 cm — has also turned out in the PSL, adding to the league’s tall seam stable.

BBL

Billy Stanlake — 204 cm — among the tallest in Big Bash history.
Peter George — 203 cm — state stalwart and brief international appearance.
Chris Tremain — around 198 cm — consistent domestic operator.

CPL

Jason Holder — 201 cm — all-rounder and captain material.
Rahkeem Cornwall — 196 cm — off-spinner and top-order slugger.
Alzarri Joseph — 196 cm — right-arm fast with steep bounce.

The Hundred

Reece Topley — 201 cm — a frequent spearhead.
Steven Finn — 201 cm — among the taller quicks to have appeared.

SA20

Marco Jansen — 206 cm — towers over most line-ups.
Lungi Ngidi — around 193 cm — stature and hit-the-deck skills.

BPL

Tall Pakistan and West Indies imports often top the charts: Shaheen Afridi (197 cm) and Alzarri Joseph (196 cm) have featured around the league circuit, while Mohammad Irfan has appeared in Bangladesh’s T20 competition and is the tallest to do so whenever he’s on a roster.

LPL

Binura Fernando — 200 cm — owns the local crown for Sri Lanka’s T20 league.

MLC

Rahkeem Cornwall — 196 cm — one of the tallest players to feature in the burgeoning US competition.

Tallest cricketer by country: concise, verified snapshots

India

Tallest Indian cricketer, all-time: Abey Kuruvilla is commonly listed around 198 cm (6 ft 6 in). A bustling right-arm seamer with a high wrist, he was a giant of the domestic game and had a brief international footprint.
Modern tall quicks: Ishant Sharma (around 193 cm) used height and a wobble-seam length to great effect in overseas Test wins. Prasidh Krishna (approximately 190 cm) hits a hard length. Stuart Binny (tall for an all-rounder) and Mohammed Siraj (not especially tall) show that India’s pace revolution is about skill more than stature.
Tall batters: Shubman Gill is long-limbed but not in the extreme bracket; the quintessential “tall Indian batter” in contemporary memory is perhaps Robin Uthappa’s upright presence, though he isn’t especially tall by this article’s thresholds.

Pakistan

Mohammad Irfan — 216 cm — the tallest cricketer in the world and a PSL original draw.
Shaheen Shah Afridi — 197 cm — left-arm spearhead with a release that extracts lift even on low decks.
Mohammad Irfan Jr — around 193 cm — pace depth.
Pakistan developed a tradition of tall seamers from Wasim Akram’s apprentices to the towering Irfan generation; height married to reverse swing and a skiddy wrist has been a hallmark of their attack identity.

Australia

Billy Stanlake — 204 cm — fast and bouncy, especially on the Gabba and Perth pitches.
Bruce Reid — 203 cm — elegant left-armer, high left-arm release and late shape.
Peter George — 203 cm — steep bounce merchant.
Cameron Green — 198 cm — rare tall batting all-rounder with a Test technique.
Tom Moody — 198 cm — top-order presence and seam-up utility.
Australia has never been shy of tall timber, from Merv Hughes’ imposing moustache-and-shoulders silhouette to modern seam stables that rely on height and pace parity.

England

Reece Topley — 201 cm — left-arm variation.
Chris Tremlett — 201 cm — heavy length that thudded into the splice.
Steven Finn — 201 cm — at his peak, a serious seam threat with late lift.
Stuart Broad — around 196 cm — not in the top-25 cut above but worth noting as a tall seam bowler whose fuller length and late movement carved out a long career.
Will Jefferson — 208 cm — domestic outlier and one of the tallest professional batters anywhere.

West Indies

Joel Garner — 203 cm — the “Big Bird”: leg-stump yorkers, brutal bounce, and the black floppy hat.
Curtly Ambrose — around 201 cm — the scariest good-length merchant of his era; height plus relentless accuracy.
Jason Holder — 201 cm — quietly world-class across formats with bat and ball.
Sulieman Benn — 201 cm — tall spinner, rare profile.
Rahkeem Cornwall — 196 cm — spin, strength, and a cult following.
Courtney Walsh — 198 cm — rhythmic, tireless, and slippery off the deck.

South Africa

Marco Jansen — 206 cm — left-arm bounce and seam with a batter’s hands in the lower order.
Morne Morkel — 196 cm — high release and energetic hit-the-deck rhythm.
Lungi Ngidi — around 193 cm — muscular shoulders and heavy length.
South Africa’s Proteas lineage of tall quicks is storied, their highveld and coastal pitches rewarding shoulder-heavy bowling.

New Zealand

Kyle Jamieson — 203 cm — irresistible in home conditions; steep bounce, hard seam.
Peter Fulton — 198 cm — “Two-Metre Peter,” a towering batter with a high-elbow technique.
Jacob Oram — 198 cm — line-and-length all-rounder who could bounce you off a length.

Sri Lanka

Binura Fernando — 200 cm — left-arm seamer, unusual profile in Sri Lankan cricket.
Dushmantha Chameera and Suranga Lakmal are nowhere near the extreme heights but have made the most of arm speed and seam position.

Bangladesh

Taskin Ahmed — tall by local standards, high-180s in centimetres, with a modern gym-built frame.
Ebadot Hossain — also tall-ish, hits the deck.
Bangladesh’s tallest cricketers rarely breach the two-metre class, but the fast-bowling group keeps growing in stature and speed.

Afghanistan

A pace revival is underway with Fareed Ahmad and Naveen-ul-Haq providing cut; neither is in the two-metre category. Afghanistan’s famous names are spinners, where height is less common; the nation’s development pathways may yet surface a true giant of pace.

Zimbabwe

Blessing Muzarabani — 203 cm — the most prominent modern Zimbabwean quick, extracting bounce others can’t on Harare’s surfaces.
Richard Ngarava — commonly listed near 196 cm — tall left-armer with seam skills.

Associate nations

Ireland: Boyd Rankin — 204 cm — towering bridge between associate and Test status, also played for England.
Netherlands: Paul van Meekeren — around 196 cm — skiddy but tall enough to trouble with bounce.
Scotland: Chris Sole — near 196 cm — high-arm release.
USA: Rahkeem Cornwall in franchise competitions and Ali Khan (not especially tall) are headline names; the league market draws in tall quicks from around the world.

Tallest female cricketers: the overlooked skyline

Women’s cricket rarely gets measured obsessively for height, but the top levels have their own skyline—pivotal for bounce and leverage in seam bowling, and reach when driving through the line.

Kate Cross — approximately 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) — England fast-medium. Presents from a high release for women’s cricket, attacks a top-of-off line with lift.
Freya Davies — approximately 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) — England fast-medium. Tall frame, repeatable action, effective with new ball and crossover seam.
Jhulan Goswami — approximately 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) — India fast bowler, a legend whose height and wrist position produced an imposing bounce and fuller length swing.
Shamilia Connell — approximately 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) — West Indies fast bowler; hits the deck hard.
Lea Tahuhu — approximately 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) — New Zealand pace leader with a heavy length.
Sophie Devine — often listed near 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) — New Zealand all-rounder; not among the absolute tallest, but powerful and long-limbed.

The tallest wicketkeepers in women’s cricket tend to be around the mid-170s in centimetres. The crouch-heavy demands and agility bias of the role naturally limit the prevalence of six-footers behind the stumps.

Does height help in cricket?

Short answer: yes, but only with the right mechanics. Height by itself just gives you scaffolding. What matters is how a bowler converts it into release height, angle, and seam presentation—and whether controls hold under fatigue.

Release height and bounce. A two-metre bowler with a strong brace on the front leg, an upright torso, and a high-arm action can release the ball from around 2.3–2.4 metres. That extra elevation means a good length climbs rather than skids, forcing batters to play with the splice and gloves. On bouncy surfaces, this turns even defensive lines into wicket-taking lengths. Watch Kyle Jamieson at the Basin Reserve or Marco Jansen on the Highveld: back-of-a-length becomes the equivalent of a short ball for shorter bowlers.
Angle and late movement. Tall bowlers who stay close to the stumps can create a steeper angle into off stump, drawing batters across and shaping the ball past the outside edge. Joel Garner’s yorkers were not just fast; they arrived from a height that made toe-crushing almost inevitable. Jason Holder, at a gentler pace, thrives by using that angle to trap on the crease.
Margin for error. Height increases the margin for error on length because the same pitched ball hits the deck at a steeper angle. A 6–8 cm error that might be punished off a 180 cm bowler can still climb awkwardly off a 200 cm bowler.
Control tax. There are trade-offs. Very tall bowlers can struggle to coordinate long levers, especially in cross-breeze. Front-foot no-balls creep in when the rhythm breaks. With long strides, the take-off point is a delicate habit: a fraction too early and the release timing goes, a fraction too late and the knee collapses and the ball floats.
Injury risk. Height often brings longer limbs, which means higher peak torques across the lower back and knees. Managing workloads and strength asymmetries is critical. Billy Stanlake’s career, for instance, has been a careful dance with his body.
Batting leverage. Tall batters enjoy a bigger hitting arc and reach. Cameron Green’s on-drive begins earlier in the swing and travels farther at the same bat speed. Tall openers like Will Jefferson used height to smother bounce; the downside is the larger strike zone for the short ball into the ribs and the challenge of getting low to sweep.
Spin bowling. Tall spinners like Sulieman Benn and Rahkeem Cornwall generate a different kind of bounce—overspin that jumps from a full length and makes the slog-sweep a risk. The high release also increases drift potential when the ball is spun hard.

Methodology and sources

Heights were cross-verified primarily with ESPNcricinfo player profiles, then corroborated against official national board bios, league media guides, and reputable team press releases. Where two values for the same player were common (for example, Shaheen Shah Afridi listed at both 197 cm and 198 cm in different places), the figure used is the one most consistently cited by primary sources.
Active status and league participation were determined from recent squad lists, match appearances, and official announcements. Professional retirements can lag in public listings; where a player is retired but commonly included in fan lists, they appear only in the all-time section here.
This page is intended to be updated on a regular cadence, with particular attention after major league drafts and international windows, since “tallest in league X” can change with a single signing.

Tallest by format and league: context and examples that matter

Tests favour height without pace if the seam position is pristine. Curtly Ambrose and Jason Holder are proof that you can use six-foot-seven to attack a full length and still be miserly.
T20 leagues reward height plus yorker skill. Reece Topley’s late swing and angle into the base of off stump are more valuable than raw bounce in death overs. Marco Jansen’s best white-ball spells add cutters and cross-seamers into the tall-bowler template.
The IPL’s shortest boundaries do not negate height. A good tall bowler’s cutter from a high release holds up in the surface for just long enough to slice the bat face. That fraction is everything.
CPL and Caribbean pitches vary. Rahkeem Cornwall’s height as a spinner can extract lively bounce from Antigua or St Lucia even when the deck looks tired.
SA20 and Highveld bounce are tailor-made for the tallest quicks. Marco Jansen’s best spells are a masterclass in using altitude: attacking the top of the bat with a cross-seam ball that lands on a crack and leaps.

Practical comparisons and height matchups

Tallest cricketer ever vs tallest active: Mohammad Irfan remains the tallest on record. Among active internationals, Marco Jansen sits next at 206 cm.
Tallest bowler in the world today: Irfan still holds the absolute listing; among regular international quicks, Jansen is the tallest.
Tallest left-arm fast bowlers: Mohammad Irfan (216 cm), Marco Jansen (206 cm), Bruce Reid (203 cm), Reece Topley (201 cm though he operates around fast-medium), Binura Fernando (200 cm), Shaheen Afridi (197–198 cm listing).
Tallest all-rounders who bowl seam: Jason Holder (201 cm), Cameron Green (198 cm), Jacob Oram (198 cm), Tom Moody (198 cm).
Tallest spin options: Sulieman Benn (201 cm) and Rahkeem Cornwall (196 cm) remain reference points; both change the hitting angles with their high-arm release.

How height translates into tactical plans

For tall quicks: bowling “just back of a length” isn’t the same as for a 180 cm seamer. The optimal attacking length is a fraction fuller because the ball still climbs. Tall quicks should aim to hit the splice repeatedly, mixing in the occasional bumper and late yorker. Tactically, the field needs a deeper gully and protection for the toe-crusher.
For tall batters: your defense must manage the ball into the belly. The toughest ball is chest-high on an offset line—Ambrose made careers miserable with that particular geometry. Tall batters benefit from an early bend of the knees and an exaggerated drop of the back shoulder when negotiating the shorter ball.
For tall spinners: higher drop means fuller stock balls. Over-spin becomes a weapon on slow pitches—topspin that kicks over the wrist and lands on the toe of middle. Flight looks different from that height; it arrives steeper and asks for vertical shots, not horizontal ones.

Consistency issues in listing heights

Athletes are sometimes measured in shoes during fitness testing. Cricket boots add several centimetres. Media guides occasionally carry that number forward.
Young players can be listed with school measurements that never get updated. That’s why you’ll see a one-centimetre wobble in the public listings for multiple names.
Rounding habits differ. You’ll find “6 ft 7 in” flattened to “2.01 m” or approximated to “200 cm” in some places. For the sake of clarity, this guide lists both cm and ft-in.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the tallest cricketer in the world?

Mohammad Irfan of Pakistan, commonly listed at 216 cm (7 ft 1 in), is widely regarded as the tallest cricketer ever and the tallest cricketer in the world. Left-arm fast, steep bounce, yorkers from the clouds.

Who is the tallest active cricketer right now?

Marco Jansen of South Africa is the tallest regular international cricketer active at the top level, listed at 206 cm (6 ft 9 in). Among franchise specialists, Mohammad Irfan still features occasionally and remains taller overall.

Who is the tallest bowler in cricket history?

Mohammad Irfan (216 cm) is the tallest bowler on record. Joel Garner (203 cm), Curtly Ambrose (about 201 cm), Boyd Rankin (204 cm), and Billy Stanlake (204 cm) form the rest of the classic skyscraper cohort.

Does being tall make you a faster bowler?

Not automatically. Height increases release height and bounce, which can make a bowler feel faster, but raw pace is a function of run-up momentum, hip-shoulder separation, braced front leg, and efficient kinetic sequencing. Curtly Ambrose didn’t need 150 kph every ball to beat you; his steep angle and late movement did the trick. Conversely, shorter quicks with elite mechanics can be very fast and still extract bounce via backspin and seam position.

What is the average height of a male international cricketer?

Squad data across major teams suggests a band around the low- to mid-180s in centimetres is common. Elite pace attacks often skew slightly taller than batting groups, but outliers exist both ways. The spread is wide; cricket has room for pocket dynamos and colossi alike.

Who is the tallest batsman in cricket?

Will Jefferson, at 208 cm (6 ft 10 in), is one of the tallest professional batters. At the international level, Peter Fulton (198 cm), Tom Moody (198 cm), Jacob Oram (198 cm), and Cameron Green (198 cm) are among the tallest batters to play at the top tier.

Who is taller: Jason Holder or Kyle Jamieson?

Kyle Jamieson is listed at 203 cm (6 ft 8 in). Jason Holder is listed at 201 cm (6 ft 7 in). Jamieson is taller by about two centimetres.

Who is taller: Shaheen Afridi or Cameron Green?

Cameron Green is listed at 198 cm (6 ft 6 in). Shaheen Afridi is commonly listed around 197–198 cm. They are essentially level in public listings, with Green typically given the slight edge.

Who is the tallest wicketkeeper?

Tall, full-time wicketkeepers at the men’s international level are rare. Among regular keepers, Ben Foakes at around 183–185 cm is on the taller side. Occasional keepers like Matt Renshaw (approximately 196 cm) are extreme outliers but do not regularly keep.

Who is the tallest spin bowler?

Sulieman Benn (201 cm) is the tallest established international spinner on record. Rahkeem Cornwall (196 cm) is also among the tallest spinners to play international cricket.

Who is the tallest cricketer in the IPL?

Marco Jansen at 206 cm is the tallest player to have appeared in the IPL. Billy Stanlake (204 cm), Kyle Jamieson (203 cm), Jason Holder (201 cm), and Reece Topley (201 cm) follow.

Who is the tallest Indian cricketer?

Abey Kuruvilla is commonly listed at about 198 cm (6 ft 6 in), making him one of the tallest Indian cricketers. Ishant Sharma, at around 193 cm, is another prominent tall quick.

Who is the tallest West Indian cricketer?

Joel Garner at 203 cm and Curtly Ambrose at roughly 201 cm headline the list historically. Jason Holder at 201 cm is the modern standard-bearer.

Who is the tallest female cricketer?

Public listings point to Kate Cross and Freya Davies, both around 183 cm (6 ft 0 in), as among the tallest established international women’s fast bowlers. Jhulan Goswami (approximately 180 cm) stands out historically.

The science of height and bounce: a crisp explainer for the curious

Release vectors. A taller bowler’s hand path traces a longer circle and a higher apex. If that circle is delivered with top-half strength and a braced front leg, the vertical component of velocity is higher at release, steepening the angle of entry. More steepness equals more bounce.
Seam and spin. A pure backspin seam stabilizes flight and reduces drag-induced deviations. Tall bowlers who generate strong backspin can land the ball on the lacquer and have it kiss and climb. The same holds for top-spinning spinners; a taller release gives more time for the ball to dip and then bite upward from a full length.
Yorkering from altitude. The yorker from a tall bowler arrives on a slightly different trajectory—later visually, but deeper, because the ball has farther to travel vertically. That has two practical effects: batters misjudge the drop, and inside edges are thicker and less likely to roll to fine leg.
Wrist, knee, and latitude. Tall bodies need diligent strength conditioning. A faltering front knee collapses the chain, dropping the release height and blunting the advantage. When you see a tall quick suddenly go floaty and short-of-a-length after five overs, it’s almost always a bracing or timing issue rather than intent.

Context you won’t find on casual lists

Tall doesn’t mean the same thing everywhere. A 190 cm quick in Mumbai can feel “tall” in domestic circles but would be average in a South African provincial attack. Consider geography when comparing lists.
Conservatism in selection plays a role. Some sides have historically preferred bustling, skiddy quicks who target stumps; others have valued height and hard lengths. That cultural preference affects who rises to the top of the pecking order.
The batting revolution changed height’s currency. T20 power hitting, with shorter backlifts and stronger forearms, reduced the fear of chest-high lift. But the new hitting arcs also created new dismissal modes: tall seamers rolling fingers over cross-seam cutters from a high release find toe-ends and top-edges because the bat swing intersects the ball’s steeper plane imperfectly.
Women’s cricket is catching up in height distribution. Professional conditioning has nudged average heights upward in pace units. As the game professionalizes, expect more six-foot seamers who can control bounce consistently.

Data caveats and how to read them

“Listed at” is the correct phrasing when the same player’s height appears differently on two authoritative websites. This guide uses the most frequent listing but notes the range for transparency.
Career status shifts quickly in franchise leagues. A player described as “active” here may shift to coaching within a season; equally, a retired international might pop up in a domestic T20. The active list is maintained with that volatility in mind.
Rounding and conversion. Many fan posts mix up 6 ft 7 in (201 cm) and 6 ft 8 in (203 cm). This guide gives both units together to avoid conversion drift.

Why this matters beyond trivia

Height is not a curiosity. It is a tactic. A selection lever. A developmental insight. If you run a domestic academy, you’ll set up different drills for a 200 cm seamer than for a 175 cm one: front-leg bracing, heel-to-toe stride control, back-foot contact stability, and a length-target grid adjusted for release altitude. If you are a batting coach, your tall top-order player needs groin and hip mobility to get low to sweep and a plan for balls into the ribs. If you are a selector, your away tours to bouncy venues demand at least one tall bowler in the 15; at home on low decks, you might still want that option for the new ball and the death.

And if you are a fan, as I am, it’s awe—pure and simple—watching a Garner yorker whistle in from an improbable angle or Jansen manipulate bounce like a puppeteer tugging invisible strings.

Key takeaways

Mohammad Irfan (216 cm) is the tallest cricketer in the world and the tallest cricketer ever listed.
The top tier of height is crowded with names at 200 cm and above: Will Jefferson, Marco Jansen, Boyd Rankin, Billy Stanlake, Joel Garner, Bruce Reid, Peter George, Cameron Cuffy, Kyle Jamieson, Blessing Muzarabani.
Sulieman Benn (201 cm) and Rahkeem Cornwall (196 cm) prove spin bowling can benefit from altitude.
In modern international cricket, the tallest active regular is Marco Jansen at 206 cm; among left-armers, the tall lineage runs from Irfan to Jansen to Reid and Shaheen.
Women’s cricket’s tallest established seamers include Kate Cross and Freya Davies at around 183 cm, with Jhulan Goswami and Lea Tahuhu near 180 cm.
Height is an advantage only when married to repeatable mechanics. Release height, seam position, and front-leg bracing transform inches into wickets.
League-by-league, the tallest crowns are clear: Jansen in the IPL, Irfan in the PSL, Stanlake in the BBL, Holder/Cornwall in the CPL, Topley in The Hundred, Jansen in the SA20, Binura in the LPL.

Final word

Cricket’s tallest cricketers are not a novelty act. They are a reminder that the game’s geometry is flexible. Bring a release point up ten centimetres and a good length morphs into an entirely different question. Put a high arm over a wrist that can really rip the seam and a flat pitch becomes a trampoline. On a breezy afternoon at the Gabba or a cool morning at Lord’s, the sport’s skyscrapers do not just bowl or bat; they redraw a batter’s mental map and force play along a new axis.

This list will evolve as squads change and new giants arrive from academy pathways and franchise drafts. The skyline shifts, but the fundamentals endure: height can be harnessed into a craft. The tallest cricketer in the world is a headline. The way the tallest use their height—that’s the story worth watching, ball after ball, league after league.

Methodology and sources summary

Primary data: ESPNcricinfo player bios for height listings.
Corroboration: official national boards, league/team media guides.
Selection: all-time list includes international and notable domestic professionals; active list focuses on recent professional appearances and squad presence in top-tier competitions.
Discrepancy handling: “listed at” phrasing where multiple public values exist; use of the most consistently cited figure in cm with ft/in conversion.

Appendix: quick-reference mini-lists

Tallest left-arm fast bowlers

Mohammad Irfan — 216 cm
Marco Jansen — 206 cm
Bruce Reid — 203 cm
Reece Topley — 201 cm
Binura Fernando — 200 cm
Shaheen Shah Afridi — 197–198 cm

Tallest batters (not necessarily all-rounders)

Will Jefferson — 208 cm
Peter Fulton — 198 cm
Tom Moody — 198 cm
Alex Hales — 196 cm

Tallest spinners

Sulieman Benn — 201 cm
Rahkeem Cornwall — 196 cm

Tallest wicketkeepers (representative tall profiles)

Ben Foakes — approximately 183–185 cm
Tom Blundell — approximately 180+ cm

Women’s tall fast bowlers

Kate Cross — approximately 183 cm
Freya Davies — approximately 183 cm
Jhulan Goswami — approximately 180 cm
Shamilia Connell — approximately 180 cm
Lea Tahuhu — approximately 180 cm

All heights above are based on commonly cited public listings and are maintained with verification discipline. If a national board updates a media guide with a new figure, that update reflects here on the next pass.