World Cup 2019: Ranking the top five bowlers of the tournament

Since the ICC Cricket World Cup was held in England this time, many cricket pundits expected the fast bowlers to showcase their brilliance. That was exactly the case as pacers fared better than the spinners, and terrorized the batters with their lightning-fast deliveries and menacing line and length.

Indian leggie Yuzvendra Chahal was the only spinner in the list of top 20 wicket-takers of the tournament. Mitchell Starc raised the bar of the competition with 27 wickets in 10 games, and bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah followed suit. Youngsters like Mustafizur Rahman and Shaheen Afridi showed why the world must keep an eye on them, while English pacer Jofra Archer justified his selection in the English team.

While young seeds sprouted, veterans like Lasith Malinga too had a great campaign in the dusk of their careers. All-rounders like James Neesham and Ben Stokes too had a great time with the ball. Let us have a look at top 5 fast bowlers of this World Cup:

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#5 Matt Henry (New Zealand)

Matt Henry

Before the World Cup, Tim Southee was expected to be a vital clog in the Blackcaps’ playing XI. However, the New Zealand team management decided to opt for the 27-year-old pacer Matt Henry. With his varying pace, incredible control and scrambled seam, the man from Canterbury surprised everyone in this World Cup.

In 9 matches, Henry picked up 14 wickets. He also maintained a brilliant economy rate of under 5 runs per over. Henry had a great start to his campaign when he picked up 3 wickets in the very first match against Sri Lanka. He consolidated his place in the team by picking up 3 more wickets in the second match against Bangladesh.

However, his best performance came in the semi-final against India. New Zealand needed something special to defend a small total of 239, and Henry helped his side wrap up the Indian batting order by picking up 3 top-order wickets, including that of in-form batsman Rohit Sharma.

#4 Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)

Shaheen Afridi

Initially, Pakistani pacer Shaheen Afridi was not expected to be a part of Sarfraz Ahmed’s playing XI. But Hasan Ali’s horror form left the Men in Green searching for a replacement, and Afridi grabbed the opportunity. The teenager repaid the faith in style as he picked up 16 wickets in just 5 games.

He was Pakistan’s second-highest wicket-taker in the competition, just 1 wicket behind Mohammad Amir, who played 8 matches. Afridi was excellent against Afghanistan and New Zealand, but his best performance came in Pakistan’s last match against Bangladesh. Afridi rattled the Bangladeshi batting order with his baffling pace. He picked up 6 wickets in that match and also became the only bowler to do so in this tournament. He was also the most economical Pakistani bowler in that match.

He has now cemented his place in the team and Pakistani fans will hope to see more such spells from him in the years to come.

#3 Jasprit Bumrah (India)

Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah has been India’s messiah ever since he has stepped into the international scene. An epitome of consistency, Bumrah had a great campaign in this World Cup. Led by him, the Indian bowling attack was one of the most effective in the competition.

The 25-year-old cricketer from Ahmedabad dismissed 18 batsmen in 9 games and was India’s most successful bowler. He picked up wickets at crucial intervals and was also exceptional at the death. Bumrah’s 3/37 against Sri Lanka helped India top the points table in the league phase.

His 4/55 against Bangladesh prevented a 2007-like humiliation for the Men in Blue, as chasing a target of 315, the Tigers once looked set to pull off a miracle. But Bumrah picked up crucial wickets in the last 2 overs to secure two points for his side. He was also extremely economical and conceded just over 4 runs per over.

#2 Jofra Archer (England)

Jofra Archer

The English fans were split on the selection of Barbados-born cricket Jofra Archer in the national side. While some felt he deserved a place, others said his selection was unfair to young English pacers like Tom Curran and David Willey. The latter half of supporters went quiet when Archer announced his arrival in style.

In the very first match against South Africa, he picked up 3 crucial wickets, including that of the half-centurion Rassie van der Dussen.

He picked up 3 wickets again in a few days' time, this time the victims being the Bangladeshi batters. In England’s very next match against West Indies, he once again picked 3 wickets. The fairytale ending to his story came when he won the World Cup for England by defending England's total of 15 in the super over.

He picked up a total of 20 wickets and also maintained a good economy rate of under 5 runs per over, bowling equally well with the new ball and in the slog overs.

#1 Mitchell Starc (Australia)

Mitchell Starc

Nothing can be more devastating for a cricketer to bow out of the biggest cricketing spectacle defeated after picking up 27 wickets. Australian left-arm quick Mitchell Starc had a great few weeks in England, but the end was far from what he expected. The English batters hit his teammates all around the park in the semi-final, and Starc was also caught in the storm.

But before that, it was one month of sheer brilliance from the 29-year-old. Starc showed the world why he was rated so highly, when he picked up 5 wickets against West Indies. He picked up 4 scalps against Sri Lanka a few days later, and then went on to produce a match-winning performance against rivals England.

His rampage continued against neighbors New Zealand when he picked up 5 wickets, conceding just 26 runs. The Sydneysider picked up 6 wickets more than any other bowler in the competition and broke Glenn McGrath's record for most wickets in a single edition of a tournament.