Hyderabad: The ninth edition of the T20 World Cup is set to start from June 2 with the opening fixture between the USA and Canada and the bowlers will play a pivotal role in the International Cricket Council (ICC) event. Also, with the number of high-scoring matches on a rise, speedsters have an important task of restricting the batters with the pace variations.
Today, we take a look at the list of the top five bowlers, who have taken most scalps in the history of the tournament. The list is dominated by Sri Lanka and Pakistan cricketers and there are no Indian players featuring in it. Also, the list has only one cricketer in it who will play the upcoming edition. Ace Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin ranks seventh in the list of highest wicket-takers in the T20 World Cup history.
- Shakib Al Hasan
The Bangladesh all-rounder is at the top of the list with 47 wickets to his name so far in the history of the competition. He has picked 47 wickets across 36 games with a strike rate of 16.48 and an economy of 6.78. He has picked seven wickets in seven matches so far in West Indies while taking four wickets from five matches in the USA. This might be the last edition of the T20 WC for the star all-rounder and he will look to make the edition memorable with his performance. - Shahid Afridi
The swashbuckling former all-rounder from Pakistan has 39 wickets to his name from 34 matches in the history of the tournament. Also, he has an economy of 6.71 and a strike rate of 20.76. The leg-spinner used great pace variations in his bowling to trouble the batters with a surprise element. - Lasith Malinga
Sri Lankan great Lasith Malinga picked 38 wickets from 31 matches and is one of the few bowlers to take five-wicket hauls in the tournament. The right-arm pacer was one of the most feared bowler around the world with his pin-point yorker and his strike rate of 16.21 highlights his wicket-taking ability. - Saeed Ajmal
The former Pakistan off-spinner appeared in 23 World Cup games taking 36 wickets from them. His prolific record also include a bowling average of 16.86 and a strike rate of 14.88. Ajmal was one of the elite spinners around the world but his career was marred with controversies as he was reported for his bowling action twice in his career. - Ajantha Mendis
Mystery spinner from Sri Lanka, Ajantha Mendis ranks fifth in the list of bowlers taking most wicket in the history of the T20 World Cup. He has 35 wickets to his name from 21 games with a strike rate of 13.45. His economy of 6.7 is the best amongst the top five wicket-takers in the history of the tournament.
