The ODI World Cup 2023 is not far away. The tournament will be taking place in India. While batters are expected to dominate on most of the venues in India, it is always the bowling strength of teams that have won tournaments such as world cups.
Over the years, ODI cricket has been blessed with many great bowlers who went on to do magnificent things for their country in ODI cricket. While taking wickets is always something the captains ask from their bowlers, bowling maidens and keeping the lid on the scoring rate also adds to the pressure on the batters, which often results in a wicket.
Today, in this article, we will see the bowlers to have sent down the highest number of maiden overs in ODIs.
Here are the top 5 bowlers who have bowled the most maiden overs in ODI cricket:
Shaun Pollock – 313 maiden overs
One of South Africa’s all-time greatest bowlers is Shaun Pollock, who is South Africa’s leading ODI wicket-taker with 393 ODI wickets, miles ahead of the second-placed Allan Donald who took 272 ODI wickets.
Shaun Pollock has bowled the most number of maiden overs in ODI – 313 maiden overs.
Glenn McGrath – 279 maiden overs
Second on the list with the most maiden overs in ODIs is Australian legend Glenn McGrath with 279 maiden overs under his belt.
Hailed as arguably the greatest pace bowler of all time, Glenn McGrath scalped 381 One Day wickets, the most for an Australian bowler.
Chaminda Vaas – 279 maiden overs
One of the finest left-arm pacers in One Day cricket, Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Vaas finished his career with 400 One Day wickets, the fourth-highest in the world.
In his 15-year One Day career from 1994 to 2008, Chaminda Vaas sent down 279 maiden overs, same as Glenn McGrath.
Wasim Akram – 237 maiden overs
Pakistan’s hero of the 1992 World Cup final, Wasim Akram has the second-most One Day wickets, 502, only behind Muttiah Muralitharan’s tally of 534 One Day scalps. Hailed as arguably the greatest fast bowler by many, Wasim Akram delivered 237 maiden overs in his One Day career that spanned from 1984 to 2003.
Kapil Dev – 235 maiden overs
India’s greatest-ever all-rounder, and one of the best of all-time, Kapil Dev picked up 253 One Day wickets in his 16-year ODI career. Kapil Dev bowled 235 maiden overs in ODIs, a record for an Indian bowler.
