Twenty-20 cricket has grown considerably in the last decade since its International debut in 2005, though all the rules favour the batsman in this format too, the bowlers have come up with exceptional performances throughout.
With only 4 overs to bowl, it becomes difficult for a bowler to assess the pitch and deliver accordingly and thus picking up a couple of wickets is considered a good spell in any T20 match.
A 5-wicket haul is a rare phenomenon in this format, but there are many bowlers who have achieved the feat and amongst them are a few cricketers who fall in an elite league to have picked up 5-wicket hauls in all the formats (Tests, ODIs and T20Is)
Let us have a look at the list:
#1 Lasith Malinga
Best bowling figures:
Test - 5/50
ODI - 6/38
T20I - 5/31
Lasith Malinga can easily be termed as the best bowler in the “Death Overs” in limited overs cricket, his records speak for themselves. Probably one of the best fast bowlers of the yorker, it is next to impossible to slog when the ‘slinger’ barges to the 22-yards from the other end. Prone to injuries throughout his career, Malinga could have been even more successful if he had played a greater number of international matches for Sri Lanka.
Malinga is the only bowler to have taken three hat-tricks in One-Day Internationals out of which two came in World Cups. When he was 27, back in 2011, the speedster announced his retirement from Test cricket due to his recurring “knee injury” and also to prolong his career in the limited-overs format.
With an impressive average of 27.78 in ODIs and 20.28 in T20s, he is a match winner on any particular day and has picked up 291 wickets in the 190 50-over matches he played. The ‘Slinger’ has taken three 5-wicket hauls in Tests while three in ODI format. A special mention to the spell against England during the 2012 World T20 where he took 5 wickets and helped his team win a crucial match.
#2 Tim Southee
Best bowling figures:
Test - 7/64
ODI - 7/33
T20I - 5/18
Tim Southee has been New Zealand’s strike bowler in recent years, known for his pace and outswing he came into limelight after being adjudged the “Player of the Tournament” award during the 2008 Under-19 World Cup. Southee is a very useful batsman in the lower order as well with a top score of an unbeaten 77 in Tests.
Making his Test match debut at a tender age of 19, he impressed everyone with instant success, taking a 5-wicket haul in his debut innings against England in Napier. During his 52 Tests, he took 177 wickets for the ‘Black Caps’ while his relatively short ODI career of 99 matches has seen him take 135 scalps.
When Pakistan visited New Zealand in 2010, Tim Southee took his one and only T20 5-wicket haul in International cricket at Eden Park, Auckland. Apart from that spell, he has taken four 5-wicket hauls in Tests and twice in ODIs.
#3 Ajantha Mendis
Best bowling figures:
Test- 6/99
ODI- 6/13
T20I- 6/8
The mystery spinner took the world of cricket by surprise when he made his debut in 2008, the final of the 2008 Asia Cup final is still one of the most successful spells by a spinner in One-Day Internationals. Known for popularising the “Carrom Ball”, Mendis was a regular in the Sri Lankan side for two to three years after his entry to the world stage and has bowled several memorable spells.
The best bowling figures in a T20 International of 6 wickets for 8 runs in 4 overs is under his name when he bowled the magical spell against Zimbabwe during the 2012 World T20 in Hambantota. Barring this, he has four 5-wicket hauls in Tests with three in the 50-over format.
But a lack of consistency has been a great barrier for him to cement a place regularly in the Sri Lankan squad. Needless to say, he still has the capability to win matches if he makes a comeback to International cricket. Ajantha Mendis falls into an elite category of bowlers to take two 5-wicket hauls in T20s, a rare feat indeed.
#4 Umar Gul
Best bowling figures:
Test- 6/135
ODI- 6/42
T20- 5/6
One of the most consistent bowlers of the ‘yorker’, Umar Gul maintained Pakistan’s legacy of producing world-class fast bowlers. Gul was exactly the bowler needed by the Asian team after Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis’ exit from the International arena. Playing an instrumental role in Pakistan’s 2009 ICC World T20 triumph, he became the new pace sensation in the world of cricket.
When Pakistani cricket was shattered by match-fixing controversies involving contemporaries like Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, he stood out from the rest keeping a clean image and performing with the ball whenever given the opportunity.
A special mention to his figures of 5 wickets conceding only 6 runs during a T20 International match against South Africa at Centurion where he only bowled only 2.2 overs! Umar Gul, like the previous bowler on the has taken two 5-wicket hauls in T20 Internationals, while he has taken four 5-fors in Tests and two in ODIs, which makes him one of Pakistan’s best bowlers from recent times.
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