Top Ten Fastest Deliveries In International Cricket
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Over the years, we have seen quite a number of bowlers terrorising the batsmen with their sheer pace. From Jeff Thompson, Malcolm Marshall, Alan Donald, Shoaib Akhtar, Shaun Tait to Mitchell Starc, the game of cricket has never quite felt the lack of extreme pacers. The aforementioned bowlers along with quite a number of others made batsmen dance to their tunes. From toe-crushing yorkers to deadly bouncers, these fast-bowlers rarely give the batsmen any time to relax.
So through this articles, we take a look at top of the fastest deliveries bowled in international cricket.
10. 155.7 kmph Dale Steyn (South Africa ) and Lasith Malinga (Sri Lanka)
Two of the modern day greats, South Africa’s Dale Steyn and Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga jointly hold the record of bowling the tenth fastest delivery in the game. Steyn, who is South Africa’s all-time leading Test wicket-taker, bowled the 155.7 kmph delivery against New Zealand.
On the other hand, Malinga, who recently steered Mumbai Indians to the IPL title and is known for his slinging action, bowled the delivery against New Zealand too in a 2011 World Cup match in Mumbai.
9. 156.4 kmph Shane Bond (New Zealand)
Shane Bond is one of the fastest if not the fastest bowler to have represented New Zealand in international cricket. The Police officer-turned- pacer gave batsmen restless nights with his extreme pace. Bond’s ability to swing the ball at a good pace made him a menace. Not to forget he was equally deadly with his pinpoint yorkers. Unfortunately, Bond’s career was marred by injuries and he never reached his true potential.
But he still managed to leave a lasting impression on the minds of cricket fanatics before retiring from the game in 2010 after battling several injuries. He bowled his fastest delivery of 156.4 kmph against Australia in the 2003 World Cup game.
8. 156.4 kmph Mohammad Sami (Pakistan)
Mohammad Sami arrived at the scene when two of Pakistan’s all-time greats – Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram – were in the twilights of their illustrious careers. The onus was on Sami to justify the hype surrounding him and fill the large voids left by the greats. Well, Sami did start promisingly. His bowling action, fast deliveries and the yorkers were a treat to watch. Sami is one of the few bowlers to have taken hat-tricks in both Tests and One Day matches. He bowled his fastest ball at 156.4 kmph against Zimbabwe in Sharjah in 2003.
7. 156.8 kmph Mitchell Johnson (Australia)
Another all-time great, Mitchell Johnson retired from the game as one of the most decorated individuals. He won the World Cup, the Ashes and several other personal trophies. Johnson did not rely much on swing and get his work done by hitting the deck hard with his pace. He bowled his fastest delivery against rivals England at 156.8 kmph in 2013.
6. 157.7 kmph Fidel Edwards (West Indies)
Fidel Edwards was regarded as one of the fastest bowlers in the world when he broke onto the scene last decade. Edwards made his Test debut as a 21-year old way back in 2003 and became only the eighth West Indian to take five or wickets on debut. He made an instant impression with his pace, swing, bounce, aggressiveness and composure.
But unfortunately, he just could not live up to the early promises and slowly faded away from the scene. He bowled his fastest delivery at 157.7kmph in 2003 against South Africa.
5. Andy Roberts:
One of the fastest bowlers the game has ever seen, the sight of Roberts running down his stride to bowl was nothing less than a nightmare for the batsmen. In a generation where there were very few safety guards, Roberts terrorised batsmen with his raw pace. He was one of the chief architects in making West Indies the most dominating team in the 70s and 80s. Roberts bowled his fastest delivery at 159.9 kmph during a speed bowling competition in Australia.
4. 160.4 kmph Jeff Thomson(Australia) and Mitchell Starc (Australia)
Australia great Jeff Thomson along with his compatriot Mitchell Starc holds the record for bowling the fourth-fastest delivery in international cricket. Thomson and Dennis Lillee’s partnership is still considered one of the best partnerships in the game.
Thomson had a very unique action, bowling off a wrong foot and with a slingy action. But despite that awkward action, he generated a great pace. Thomson bowled his fastest ball at 160.4 kmph on the fastest pitch in the world at Perth against the West Indies in 1975 series.
Starc too is one of the fastest bowlers of this generation. He bowled his fastest delivery in a Test against New Zealand. Starc has already helped Australia win a World Cup and the Ashes.
3. 160.7 kmph Shaun Tait (Australia)
Another great pacer who failed to reach his full potential due to injury, Shaun Tait, also called the wild thing, was nothing less than a nightmare for the batsmen. He is arguably the fastest bowler the game has ever witnessed. Tait bowled his fastest 160.7 kmph delivery against Pakistan in a T20 at the MCG.
2. 161.1 kmph Shaun Tait and Brett Lee (Australia)
Like said previously Tait is arguably the fastest bowler to have played the game, it is not surprising that he has found another mention in this list. The right-arm pacer broke the 100 mph barrier against England at Lord’s 2010.
Joining him on the list is his compatriot and legendary pacer Brett Lee. Lee was an exceptional pacer as he had amazing control on his pace. Moreover, he also maintained his body brilliantly which helped him enjoy a long career despite the rigours of pace bowling. He bowled his fastest at 161.1 kmph against New Zealand at Napier in 2005.
1. 161.3 kmph Shoaib Akhtar (Pakistan)
Shoaib Akhtar is perhaps the synonym of fast-bowling. The former Pakistan speedster is being recognised by the Guinness book of world records officially as the bowler to bowl the fastest delivery in cricket. Akhtar became the first bowler in cricket history to break the 100mph barrier officially in the 2003 World cup. He bowled his fastest ball at 161.3 kmph against England and the unlucky batsman to face him was Nick Knight.
