Top 5 six-wicket hauls in ODIs that ended in defeat

It's a widely accepted belief that 50-over cricket is more about showcasing one's batting maestro. Over the period of time, this format of cricket has witnessed a list of changes including an increased quota of Powerplay overs, improved pitches for batting, shortened dimensions of boundaries, usage of 2 new balls etc.

Most of those changes have tended to favor batsman more than the bowler. In a scenario where the bat generally dominates the ball, it is immensely difficult for the bowlers to mark their impact in the game. However, sometimes we feel lucky to witness some of the most lethal performances getting delivered by the bowlers.

In ODIs, bowlers have to make their presence felt within their allotted quota of 60 deliveries. Claiming a 6 wicket haul in that allotted quota is a daunting feat. And it becomes a heartbreaking moment for the bowler when despite all his efforts to put up a majestic performance, his team ends up tasting defeat.

In this article, we will talk about some of the greatest 6 wicket hauls claimed by the bowlers which were still not enough to record victory for their sides.

#5 Ajit Agarkar (Ind), 6/42 vs Australia at Melbourne - 2003

After a strong opening partnership between Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist, Ajit Agarkar removed both the Aussie openers in his consecutive overs and later dismissed Damien Martyn for a 'Golden Duck’. Australia however, recovered from these early blows given by Agarkar when Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke added 143 runs for the 5th wicket, with both of them scoring their respective half-centuries.

Agarkar, although managed to claim Symonds but not before the latter has done enough damage. He completed his 6 wicket haul by getting Brian Williams caught off Yuvraj Singh. Being set a target of 289, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag responded well by adding a century partnership for the first wicket.

Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly both scored in excess of 50. But later in the innings, the Indian middle order failed to score runs at the required pace owing to a collective bowling effort from the Aussies. India lost their last 6 wickets for only 13 runs, thereby losing the match by 18 runs.

#4 Akila Dananjaya (SL), 6/54 vs India at Kandy - 2017

Akila Dananjaya put life in the match

India were set to chase a modest total of only 237 runs by Sri Lanka in the 2nd ODI of the series. And in the first 15 overs of India’s innings, the opening duo of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan made enough mockery of the Sri Lankan bowling attack. India, at one stage, were 109 without any loss of a wicket.

This was when Dananjaya dismissed Rohit Sharma for 54. In his next over, he sent Kedar Jadhav, Virat Kohli, and KL Rahul back to the pavilion. He completely bamboozled Indian middle order with his sharp turns and disciplined line and length. India were soon reduced to 131/7 with Dananjaya bagging 6 of those wickets.

However, a century partnership between MS Dhoni and Bhuvneshwar Kumar helped India to achieve the target without any further discomfort. Sri Lanka lost the match by 3 wickets but Dananjaya was awarded Man of the match for his memorable performance.

#3 Imran Khan (Pak), 6/14 vs India at Sharjah

Imran Khan left India bleeding with his '6-wicket haul' at Sharjah

Imran Khan, who is the current Prime Minister of Pakistan, was among some of the most deadliest pace bowlers of his time. In this match particularly, he was at his supreme best and he delivered one his best bowling performances. He dismissed the opening pair of Ravi Shastri and KS Srikkanth. And then, he proceeded to cut through the Indian middle order by getting wickets of Dilip Vengsarkar, Sunil Gavaskar, and Mohinder Amarnath.

A gritty knock from Mohammad Azharuddin and a late surge from the captain Kapil Dev, however, helped India go past beyond 100 runs. When India were finally all out for 125, nobody would have imagined that this petty total would be enough for India to win the match rather convincingly. India’s collective bowling efforts and some casual batting display by Pakistan allowed India emerging as the victorious side.

#2 Shane Bond (NZ), 6/23 vs Australia at Port Elizabeth - 2003

The Aussies mighty batting power had no answers for Shane Bond's lethal performance

In this Super six encounter vs Australia at Port Elizabeth, Shane Bond delivered one of the most memorable spells of the World Cups. His scalps included top 4 of the mighty Aussies batting line up. Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, and Damien Martyn, all succumbed to the aggression of Bond.

Australia were reduced to 84/7 at one stage. But lack of support for Bond from the other end allowed the Aussies to make a comeback. Michael Bevan added 97 runs with Andy Bichel for the 8th wicket and Australia finished their innings at 208/9.

The Kiwi batsmen could not make sufficient adjustment to this pace friendly pitch and other than Stephen Fleming, none of their batsmen were able to make any valuable contribution to the scorecard. As a result, New Zealand lost the match by 96 runs. Brett Lee bagged a 'five-for' for Australia.

#1 Mitchell Starc (Aus), 6/28 vs New Zealand at Auckland - 2015

Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc’s performance came in one of the best low scoring thrillers of the World Cups. Auckland had already seen a brilliant spell from Trent Boult in the first innings of this match. But nobody at that time knew that Starc would outperform even Boult.

Being set a target of 152 runs, the Kiwis, at one stage, were cruising towards victory when they needed 75 runs with 9 wickets remaining and with more than 40 overs in hand. To add salts to the injury was Brendon McCullum, who was batting at the other end after already having scored a 50 off just 21 balls.

It is at this stage when Mitchell Starc delivered some nasty bouncers and deadly yorkers. And in this process, he uprooted timber of Ross Taylor and Grant Elliot. He also got the danger man Luke Ronchi caught behind the stumps.

When New Zealand required 6 runs with 3 wickets in hand, Starc got Adam Milne and Tim Southee clean bowled in successive deliveries. However, a calm, cool, and composed Kane Williamson hit a 6 off Pat Cummins in the next over and Kiwis sealed this epic thriller by 1 wicket.