Top 5 greatest fast bowlers of all time

Fast bowling is quite possibly the most exciting thing in the game of cricket. It is an adrenaline-pumping and enjoyable aspect of the game which keeps the spectators occupied and delights them. It is always fun to see the ball hurled at over 90 miles per hour at the batsmen, though it might not be as enjoyable for the batsman himself. Still, fast bowling is not about raw pace only. It is also about accuracy and outwitting the batsman.

Over the decades, cricket has been graced by some great fast bowlers who have enthralled us with their pace, accuracy and guile. The list of great fast bowlers is really long and it is not easy to choose the top 5 from such a long list. Still, we have managed to come up with our top 5 and would like to take a look at them:

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5. Wasim Akram (Pakistan)

Wasim Akram

There has probably never been a cricketer as talented as Wasim Akram. He had all the attributes a great cricketer should have. Moreover, he was quite possibly the most versatile fast bowler of all time. He could swing the ball both ways, could bowl with an upright seam, was quick enough and had a lethal yorker. He was a great exponent of the reverse swing also and could be deadly with the old ball.

Akram’s record speaks for itself. He took 414 wickets in 104 test matches at an average of 23. His strike rate was just a shade below 55. Akram also took 502 ODI wickets, the highest by a fast bowler. Akram was able to maintain an economy rate below 4 throughout his ODI career.

He performed superbly in all conditions and on every kind of surface. He destroyed England in their own backyard with his superb swing bowling, pinned down West Indies in West Indies with his guile and accuracy, troubled Australia in Australia with his raw pace and bounce and remained a champion bowler on his home turf. Akram was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 30 but he continued to play till the age of 37. He reduced his run-up and depended more upon his accuracy and experience in the latter part of his career. He was also a great sight to look at and had a smooth, effortless bowling action

4. Sir Richard Hadlee (New Zealand)

Sir Richard Hadlee

Sir Richard Hadlee was the most accurate fast bowler of all time. He was also probably the most intelligent of them all. He had a lethal out swinger and the ability to out think the batsmen. If there was ever a thinking fast bowler, it was Sir Richard.

Hadlee was the first bowler to break the 400 test wicket barrier and went on to take 431 wickets in 86 test matches. His destruction of Australia in the 1985-86 test series remains one of the finest ever performance by a fast bowler in a test series. The conditions in New Zealand allowed Hadlee to use his swing bowling prowess to the fullest extent. Although he did not have express speed, he was fast enough to trouble the bastmen.

Hadlee boasted a strike rate of 51 and a bowling average below 23. He also took 158 ODI wickets at an economy rate below 4. He was very difficult to score off as he could quite literally put the ball on a coin. Hadlee won quite a few test matches single-handedly for New Zealand in his illustrious career. The fact that he was the only world-class bowler in the Kiwi team did not deter him and he kept on improving as a bowler.

3. Glenn McGrath (Australia)

Glenn McGrath

Glenn McGrath was a bowler of metronomic accuracy and single-minded focus. He was a fierce competitor who always wanted to win his battles against the batsmen. He also preferred to keep things simple and stick to the basics. He put the ball in the right areas consistently and waited for the batsmen to commit errors, which they did frequently.

McGrath was almost peerless in terms of statistics also. He took 563 wickets in 124 test matches which made him the most successful fast-bowler in the history of the game. He had an amazing average of 21.64 and an equally great strike rate of 51.90. His ODI record was stupendous too as he took 381 wickets at an economy rate below 4.

McGrath never relied on pace and his bowling speed hovered around the 85 mph mark. Being 6 feet 5 inches tall, he was very effective with his bouncers too. He formed a deadly partnership with fellow great Shane Warne and the pair won Australia numerous test matches. He was also a part of the most successful cricket team of all time as Australia dominated world cricket throughout the 1990s and 2000s. McGrath’s relentless accuracy and winning mentality was one of the reasons behind that success.

2. Malcolm Marshall (West Indies)

Malcolm Marshall

There was nothing that Malcolm Marshall could not do with a cricket ball. He could swing the ball both ways, bowl devastating cutters, bounce the batsmen out, terrorize them with raw pace and bog them down with his accuracy. He was successful on all kinds of pitches and playing conditions. He was also a part of the fearsome pace quartet of the great West Indian side.

Marshall’s strike rate was below 47 and bowling average less than 21. He took 376 test wickets in 81 matches and no other fast bowler can boast of such phenomenal record. He also took more than 150 ODI wickets and was one of the major reasons behind West Indies’ dominance throughout the 1980s.

Many fast bowlers are not able to perform well on the dry and lifeless pitches of the sub-continent but Marshall was an exception in this regard also. He was instrumental in destroying India 3-0 in a test series played in India just after the 1983 World Cup. Marshall also ran through the English batting line-up several times in his career and boasted a wonderful record against all test playing countries. He could bowl at more than 90 mph but reduced his pace in the latter part of his career to depend more on his versatility.

1. Dennis Lillee (Australia)

Dennis Lillee

Dennis Lillee remains the benchmark for fast-bowling excellence till date. He was eulogized and idolized by his contemporaries and followers alike. Marshall described him as the greatest fast bowler of all time, Hadlee idolized him and another fellow great Imran Khan also thought him to be incomparable. He quite literally remains the Godfather of all fast bowlers.

Lillee took 355 test wickets in only 70 matches at an average below 24. He also had an outstanding strike rate of 48 and was the first fast bowler to cross the 350 wickets mark. Lillee played in only 63 ODIs and took 103 wickets at an economy rate of 3.6. But mere stats cannot do justice to his phenomenal effect on the game. He formed a legendary partnership with fellow Aussie pacer Jeff Thompson and the pair tormented all the other test playing nations, especially arch rivals England.

Lillee had a beautiful outswinger and a very effective inswinger. He was a great proponent of seam bowling and had a deadly bouncer. He was a tearaway fast bowler in the initial days of his career but became a very intelligent bowler in course of time. He developed great accuracy and versatility as his career progressed and had become a master of his trade in course of time. He reduced his run-up and started flummoxing the batsmen with his craftiness. Lillee could also bowl a very nice cutter which made him very effective with the old ball. He was a complete package and remains the epitome of fast-bowling greatness.