Four Bowlers With Best Figures In Asia Cup

Asia cup has been very significant to determine the best cricketing nation in the continent and the bowlers have been very keen on putting their best efforts to win the tournament. Even if the batman had made centuries, it will always be down to the bowlers if they could restrict the opponents or defend the scores.

Any score is chasable at the moment in limited-overs cricket, but in the past, it was way different as the quality of the bowlers did not allow the batsman to dominate and put up big scores on the board. With a note on that, here are four bowlers with the best figures in the Asia Cup.

Four Bowlers With Best Figures In Asia Cup:

Ajantha Mendis’s 5 for 22:

This was the Asia cup in 2008 in a group match, where the Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis broke the back of the UAE batting lineup with his variations. Sri Lanka batted first and posted a big score of 290 for the loss of 9 wickets with half-centuries from Mahela Jayawardene and Mahela Udawatte.

In reply, UAE was rolled up for 148 in their big chase and the young spinner again proved to be an unplayable bowler. Mendis bowled 6.3 overs giving away 22 runs with one maiden and picked up five wickets at an economy rate of 3.38. This was the fourth-best figure in the Asia cup.

Arshad Ayub’s 5 for 21:

This was way back in 1988 when the wills Asia Cup match took place between the rivals India and Pakistan. Pakistan batted first and the Indian right-arm off-spinner Arshad Ayub created havoc in Pakistan’s batting order. He picked up five wickets for 21 runs in his 9 over spell and restricted them to just 142.

Arshad Ayub’s match-winning spell is the third-best bowling figure in Asia cup history and it helped India chase down the score easily with four wickets in hand and 26 balls remaining.

Aaqib Javed’s 5 for 19:

Aaqib Javed was a sensation in the 1995 Asia Cup and he registered the second-best figures in the history of the tournament. The right-arm medium pacer picked up five-wicket for just 19 runs and made sure Pakistan won the game easily.’

In a chase of 267, India lost a cluster of wickets early, and the main man responsible for it was Aaqib Javed. His extraordinary spell meant that India could manage just 169 and lost the game by 97 runs in the end.

Ajantha Mendis’s 6 for 13:

The Sri Lankan mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis first came into the limelight in the Asia cup when he ran through the Indian batting order. This was the final of the Asia cup in 2008 and Sri Lanka posted a big score of 273 on the board. Jayasuriya scored a marvellous century that helped Sri Lanka rebuild the innings.

In reply, India could muster only 173 in their chase, as Mendis came up with some special figures in the match. Mendis bowled 8 overs in the match, gave away just 13 runs, and picked up 6 wickets at an economy rate of 1.62. The Indian batsmen failed to read his variations and eventually lost the final by 100 runs. It was the best figures for a bowler in the Asia Cup too.