Top 3 match-winning bowling spells in World Cup 2019

After 46 days of non-stop exuberant cricketing action in the World Cup, the hosts, England were crowned as the World Champions for the first time in 44 years. They defeated New Zealand in the finals courtesy of the "boundary rule" when both the teams were tied on the same score in the super-over as well. And, by far, that match was one of the best matches in the history of World cricket.

Unlike other World Cups, this tournament had 10 teams in which every team had to play the other in the league stage. This not only opened up opportunities for the lower-ranked sides but ensured that the tournament was a treat for the fans.

Before the start of the World Cup, every team expected it to be a high-scoring tournament. But the extra pressure of being on the grandest stage of world cricket affected the fearless approach of the batsmen. In addition, bowlers in this World Cup performed successfully and prompted the best out of themselves. We witnessed that the bowlers who were using their skills and variations effectively were able to find success in defending their first innings score or restricting the opposition from the get-go throughout the competition.

In this article, we will look at three bowling performances in the World Cup which proved to be the main cause for their team's success.

Honourable mention: Mohammad Shami vs Afghanistan - 4 for 40

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3. Shaheen Shah Afridi vs New Zealand - 3 for 28

New Zealand v Pakistan - ICC Cricket World Cup 2019

Fresh from their last victory against South Africa at Lord's, Pakistan continued their winning run against New Zealand. In a string of matches that Pakistan needed to win to survive in the race for qualification, their performances were delivered with a passion and were spirited. After a delayed start due to rain, Williamson won the toss and elected to bat first. Mohammad Amir began the innings well, dismissing Guptill on his very first ball.

Sarfaraz Khan handed the ball to Shaheen Afridi in the 7th over and he delivered brilliantly for his side. Afridi's quick angled deliveries towards Munro nicked the outside edge of the bat and flew straight towards the first slip, where Haris Sohail made no mistake. New Zealand was in all sorts of trouble with 24-2 in 6.2 overs when Ross Taylor came out to steady the ship for the Kiwis.

Where Williamson was looking rock-solid in the middle facing the swift and rapid deliveries of the Pakistani pacers, Taylor was struggling on the other side. A few moments later another Afridi delivery nicked the outside edge of Taylor's willow. Sarfaraz took a blinder behind the stumps to send Taylor back for 3 runs. Shaheen Afridi was on fire, claiming 2 wickets in 3 overs despite leaking only 5 runs.

Afridi's fiery spell produced one more wicket for his side when he followed up his maiden over with another outside edge of the batsman and this time, the prey was Tom Latham. In a match where Babar Azam's 100 stole the limelight, it was the lively spell by Afridi which laid the foundation for his teams victory.

Shaheen Shah Afridi took a total of 16 wickets in the tournament in just 5 matches which he was part of.

2. Mitchell Starc vs England - 4 for 43

Australia v England - ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Semi-Final

England vs Australia is a rivalry that all fans around the globe look forward to. In Game 32 at Lord's, Eoin Morgan won the toss and asked Australians to bat first on a pitch which seemed to have something for the bowlers initially. In the first 5 overs, Finch and Warner looked to settle their nerves and were struggling to find the boundaries. But when they started going, they never look back. Finch played a captains knock and scored a century which resulted in his team to reach a total of 285 for 7 in 50 overs.

Defending 286, Jason Behrendorff and Mitchell Starc were handed the new ball and both were in seriously good form. Behrendorff went past Vince just on the second ball of the innings. Starc carried on from there and took the all-important wicket for his side of Joe Root. Starc trapped him in front of the stumps and caught him LBW. Then, he exploited the short-ball weakness of Morgan and bowled a fiery 150 kmph bouncer to him, which Morgan couldn't keep down and the ball went straight towards Pat Cummins at fine leg.

But his third wicket was perhaps the delivery of the tournament when his reverse swinging yorker blew away the batsman who was batting on 89. Ben Stokes was battling for the English side and had stitched up a dangerous partnership with Woakes in the middle. Getting Stokes out essentially meant the victory was in the grasp of the Aussies and Starc delivered just that for them. His last dismissal was also the only wicket left for England when his fuller length delivery was lofted straight towards the captain Finch by Adil Rashid who was batting on 25.

Starc was the highest wicket-taker in the tournament claiming a total of 27 wickets. In this World Cup, he also broke Glenn Mcgrath's record of taking the most number of wickets in a single edition of a World cup.

1. Matt Henry vs India - 3 for 28

New Zealand v England - ICC Cricket World Cup Final 2019

The man who almost single-handedly crushed the dreams of the Indians on the day of semi-finals was Matt Henry. After the first innings of New Zealand in the semi-final, everyone thought that it would be an effortless chase by India. But Kiwis always were a team full of determination and fight.

In cold-windy conditions, it was always going to be a tough ask for the batsman to face the likes Matt Henry and Trent Boult in their initial spells, where the ball could move both ways. And New Zealand's fast bowlers stepped up for them when they needed them the most.

Henry displayed one of the best performances in a New Zealand jersey, where he exposed the middle-order of the Indian team with his skills of swinging the ball and pitching the ball in the right area constantly. Henry first took the wicket of the match at that point in Rohit Sharma, when he bowled an out-swinger and the ball knicked past Sharma's edge towards the wicket-keeper. In the next over, Boult trapped Virat Kohli in front of the stumps taking the second big fish for them.

And just when Matt Henry came to bowl his next over, he took on K.L. Rahul and dismissed him for 1 run and suddenly India were 5-3. Henry was bowling beautifully, pitching the ball in the correct areas regularly. And the same strategy became the reason for Rahul's dismissal. But then came his third scalp and one of the best catches of the competition by Jimmy Neesham. Again Henry bowled his good length delivery, which Karthik wanted to drive but then checked his shot at the last moment, creating a half-chance for Neesham to grab a stunner. Henry and his team dismantled the opposition and Henry was adjusted the Man of The Match.