An interesting decade is coming to an end, 10 years that showed us many brilliant performances in form new records being formed, old norms being disrupted and the all-time growth of this game.
2011 was the year when India won the ODI World Cup after 28 years, 2015 witnessed mighty Australia come back to business and now in 2019, England enjoyed their first World Cup title win. The 50 over format has evolved into a very interesting form of cricket and is not only dominated by the batsmen now. The bowlers in this decade have stood strong and earned tremendous respect. Here is a look at the best 50 over bowlers of the decade:
1) Dale Steyn
2) Lasith Malinga
3) Mitchell Starc
4) Mitchell Johnson
5) Jasprit Bumrah
1) Dale Steyn:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5sZ9uFAOfS/
Those fearsome eyes could claim a wicket only with a stare. Steyn in by far considered one of the best pacers produced by South Africa. His show in the first half of the decade inspired a ton of young bowlers who still look up to Dale.
The South African speedster has swung the ball at high speeds to take 145 wickets in 90 ODI’s. However post the 2015 World Cup, Steyn has not been a regular part of the South African squad. Captain Du Plessis expressed sheer disappointment when Steyn was ruled out of the 2019 World Cup owing to an injury. He averages 25.96 at an economy rate of 4.88 rpo in 124 innings.
2) Lasith Malinga:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B0Yf7KNlr4-/
The Sri Lankan pacer has been the leading ODI wicket-taker since 2010. He added explosive ammunition in Sri Lanka’s bowling attack and led a young lot of bowlers in the successful 2011 campaign.
Malinga’s form faded away in the last quarter of the decade but his services in the rest three quarters cannot be ignored. Malinga has taken 8 five-wicket hauls in the decade and destroyed many batting lineups. In 220 innings Malinga has claimed 338 wickets.
3) Mitchell Starc:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5KK1fugNyc/
Starc played Australia’s leading gun in the 2015 and 2019 World Cups, topping the charts in both tournaments. Starc’s ability to bowl in the death with ruthless speed and some swing differentiates him with others.
The left-arm pacer believes in knocking the stumps of any opponent batsman. Starc’s impact is not restricted only to numbers but he has carried entire matches on his skillful shoulders. The 29-year-old has claimed 172 wickets at an average of 21 in this format.
4) Mitchell Johnson:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BpyVn54ATlw/
The Aussie is Starc’s successful predecessor. After playing over 150 matches, Johnson’s economy still stays at 4.84 rpo. The 38-year-old retired in 2015 and even having played only for the half-decade, Mitchell has an impact to feature in this list.
Australian pitches offer a lot of bounce and Johnson knows how to supplement bounce with a lethal swing. He is a big match player and likes performing when the stakes are high. Speaking of this decade specifically, Johnson picked 128 wickets at an average of 31.1.
5) Jasprit Bumrah:
https://www.instagram.com/p/ByVnbpjntid/
The youngest of all these pacers is someone who made his ODI debut in 2016 against Australia. He has the least experience but can be acclaimed as one of the best death bowlers in this decade.
Jasprit has been India’s mainstay bowler for a long time now and can boast to be the world’s best bowler in the format, currently.
In 58 ODI matches, Bumrah has already claimed 103 wickets at an excellent economy rate of 4.49 rpo. His average if 21.88 speaks a lot on his ability
