Sportskeeda Cricket Awards 2014: Test Bowlers of the Year

The year 2014 has seen several memorable performances in Test cricket. The year started off with Australia completing an emphatic 5-0 whitewash of England at Sydney, and it will be rounded off by the Aussies taking on India in the Boxing Day Test at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).Apart from that memorable series win for the Australians, there have been some other very good wins for other teams across the globe.Most of these wins have been achieved courtesy of some excellent performances by the bowlers of the respective sides.Here's a look at the best five bowlers in 2014:

#5 Ryan Harris

Ryan Harris has picked up 20 wickets in the 5 Tests that he has played in 2014 so far at an average of 24.15. He started off the year on a great note, picking up a 8-wicket match haul in the New Year’s Test against England at Sydney.

He subsequently took 10 wickets in the three-match Test series against South Africa, including a 7-wicket haul in the third and final Test at Cape Town which helped Australia beat the Proteas 2-1.

He featured in the first Test against India at Adelaide and picked up 2 wickets in the match, but was ruled out of the second Test at Brisbane. He will be looking to get himself fit for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, which will be Australia’s final Test of the year, so that he can finish the year on a high.

#4 James Anderson

The leader of England’s pace attack, James Anderson has picked up 40 wickets from 8 Tests in 2014 at an average of 22.15. The 32-year-old picked up 3 wickets in the final Ashes Test at Sydney but couldn’t help his side avoid a 5-0 whitewash at the hands of Australia.

He had a good outing in the first home series of the summer against Sri Lanka, picking up 12 wickets, but again found himself on the losing side as Sri Lanka beat England 1-0.

However, he had a terrific time in the following series against India where he picked up 28 wickets in 5 Tests which included a five-wicket haul at Southampton and helped his side win the five-match series 3-1. He was also deservedly adjudged England’s player of the series for his performance.

#3 Rangana Herath

Sri Lanka’s premier spinner Rangana Herath is the highest wicket-taker of 2014 so far, having picked up 56 wickets in the 9 matches that he has played at an average of 27.17. Herath started the year by taking a solitary wicket in the second innings of the first Test against Pakistan in the UAE, but then picked up a combined tally of 11 wickets in the second and third Tests of the three-match series.

He played a crucial role in Sri Lanka’s 1-0 series victory over England in June, picking up 8 wickets in the two Tests, including a four-wicket haul in the first Test at Lords. Although he couldn't help his side beat South Africa in the two-match Test series at home, the 36-year-old picked up 12 wickets in the two matches that included a nine-wicket match haul in the second Test at the SSC in Colombo.

However, Herath’s best performance of the year came in the next series against Pakistan where he picked up 24 wickets in just two Tests at home, with the Pakistan batsmen having no answer in particular to his spell of 9 for 127 in the first innings of the second Test.

#2 Mitchell Johnson

The resurgence of Mitchell Johnson as a fast bowler is a story that will be spoken about in great detail in the years to come. Tha Australian quick ripped the heart out of the England batting line-up during the Ashes series at home at the end of 2013 and carried that form into the New Year’s Test at Sydney, picking up 6 wickets in the Test match which saw Australia complete a 5-0 whitewash.

He also played a major role in Australia’s 2-1 Test series win against South Africa in the rainbow nation in February, picking up 22 wickets in 3 Tests that included a spell of 7 for 68 in the first innings of the first Test at Centurion.

However, in the two-match Test series against Pakistan in the UAE, the 33-year-old didn’t have the greatest of times, picking up just 6 wickets in the two matches. This had an impact on Australia’s overall performance as well, as they went down 2-0 to the ‘hosts’.

Johnson picked up four more wickets in the first Test against India at Adelaide to take his tally to 38 in 8 Tests this year, and he will be looking to add to that number in the ongoing Test at Brisbane and the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne, starting next week.

#1 Dale Steyn

Very few would disagree that Dale Steyn is the best fast bowler in the world right now. The South African has had a very good 2014 so far, having picked up 33 wickets at an average of 19.03 in the seven Tests that he has played. Steyn’s best performance this year came against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club, where he took 5 for 46 in the first innings to help dismiss the Zimbabweans for 256.

The 31-year-old was also part of South Africa’s Test series win against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka and picked up 13 wickets in the two-match series. Although he couldn’t help his country win the series, Steyn took 13 wickets in the three-match Test series against Australia at home and could’ve have picked up more scalps had he bowled more overs than what he did in the final Test at Cape Town.

South Africa are currently involved in a two-match Test series against the West Indies at home, and Steyn will be looking at the series as an opportunity to add to his already impressive tally for this year.