Top 5 ODI spinners of all time

Spin is not just a style of bowling, it is an art form, and one notoriously difficult to get absolutely correct. Spinners beguile batsmen into unplayable shots, turn the ball in defiance of physics, and it can confound even the best, most experienced of cricketers.

Here, we take a look at 5 of the best spinners who were revolutionaries in the art in their own way:

Sanath Jayasuriya

The former Sri Lankan skipper, usually the picture of calm on the field like his one-time teammate and successor Kumar Sangakkara, was more known for being a swashbuckling batsman and leading his side from the front. Indeed, over a career spanning 22 years, Jayasuriya amassed 13,430 runs from 433 innings.

But Jayasuriya is still the third-highest wicket taker for the nation, and a talented left-arm spin bowler. He took 323 wickets in the 50-over format, with four 5-wicket hauls.

He once took six wickets in a One-day international, ending with figures of 6/29 during England's tour of Sri Lanka in Moratuwa in 1993.

Saqlain Mushtaq

Pakistani ace bowler Saqlain Mushtaq is widely and unequivocally considered among the best spin bowlers of all time.

He was a revolutionary in the field, and is widely considered the man to have pioneered the 'doosra', which is a leg break delivery bowled like an off-break; it aims to confuse the batsman facing it.

Interestingly, it was Pakistan's wicketkeeper at the time, Moin Khan, who was indirectly responsible for the name. The word 'doosra' means 'the other' in Urdu (and Hindi), and Moin would often ask Saqlain to bowl "the other delivery" to the batsman. Iconic former cricketer - and then commentator, Tony Grieg made the connection, and since then a number of bowlers among them Muttiah Muralitharan and Harbhajan Singh, have used the delivery. One key difference, however, is that Mushtaq's action was not contentious - while most bowlers since have faced controversy for their deliveries.

Saqlain took 288 wickets in 165 innings, with an average of 4.29 and six 5-wicket hauls.

His best figures in One-day internationals was a 5/20 haul against England during the side's tour of Pakistan in 2000.

He became the first Pakistani to take a hat-trick at a World Cup, playing against Zimbabwe at the 1999 edition of the tournament.

Daniel Vettori

Former New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori is considered a gentleman in the modern cricketing game. He bowled a steady line and length and in what is the ideal for every bowler, was always stingy with runs.

The greatest spinner his country has produced, and arguably its greatest cricketer, Daniel Vettori also managed to be undeterred by surface, managing to generate spin on a flat track or seemingly unfriendly conditions for spin.

Left-armer Vettori took 305 wickets from 277 innings in his 18-year ODI career, with two five-wicket hauls.

He has staggering best figures of 5/7 against Bangladesh during the Tigers' tour of New Zealand in 2007, and ended his career post the 2015 World Cup as one of the best left-arm breaks we have ever een.

Shahid Afridi

'Boom boom' Afridi, as he is known by many of his fans, has become almost synonymous with career longevity - for the sheer reason of coming out of retirement on multiple occasions.

Over a 19-year career, the Pakistani leg-spinner took 395 wickets in 372 innings in addition to being quick with the bat. He had a good economy rate of of 4.62, and took a robust nine five-wicket hauls in One-Dayers.

Afridi's best figures were 7 wickets for a mere 12 runs, against the West Indies in Providence, during Pakistan's tour of the Caribbean in 2013. The Men in Green won that match by a whopping 126 runs.

Muttiah Muralitharan

Sri Lanka v West Indies - 2011 ICC World Cup Warm Up Game

Without dispute, the Sri Lankan icon is the greatest spinner cricket has ever seen. The man with a broad smile and a controversial action has seen that action taken apart, analysed, and during his 18-year cricketing career, set a number of records that may not be beaten during his own lifetime at the very least.

He all but made himself the face of Sri Lankan bowling during his career, and took a staggering 534 wickets from 341 innings.

He maintained a meagre economy rate of 3.93 over the course of his career, and won thirteen Man of the Match titles in One-day internationals.

Controversial though his bowling action may be, statistics speak louder than words - and perhaps none speak as loudly as Deshabandu Muttiah Muralitharan's.