Saturday, September 10, 2011

Top 10 Fast Bowler of ICC Cricket World

There are many great fast bowlers in the ICC Cricket history so it is very difficult to make a list of top ten fast bowlers of ICC Cricket World. Fast bowling is one of the two main forms of bowling in cricket. Many people think that only speed belongs to fast bowling and all the imaginative features of bowling belongs to spin bowling. But reality is different from it, because mastering in lots of techniques and arts such as swing in the air, swing off the pitch, bounce, cutter, etc. are required to become a fast bowler.
The main goal of fast bowling is to create difficulties for the batsman to hit the ball cleanly by bowling the hard cricket ball at high speed and bringing it to bounce off the pitch in an unpredictable fashion or move sideways through the air. People, who practice fast bowling, are known as fast or pace bowlers. List of top 10 Fast Bowler of ICC Cricket World is provided below.
10. Shoaib Akhtar:
Shoaib Akhtar is right arm fast bowler from Pakistan. He has achieved the fastest delivery in his bowling speed, at 161.3 km/h (100.2 mph) twice at a cricket match against England and set an official world record. He became one of the the #1 fastest bowlers in cricket with his ability to bowl fast yorkers and quick bouncers. Unfortunately, he has been involved in some disputes during his career.
Shoaib Akhtar was prohibited for five years on 1 April 2008, for publicly condemning the Pakistan Cricket Board. However, he was suspended from the five years ban by the Lahore High Court in Pakistan in October 2008 and he was chosen in the 15-man squad for the Twenty20 Quadrangular Tournament in Canada. Akhtar is a legend of Pakistan cricket as per Pakistani judge, Rana Bhagwandas. Unfortunately, I placed Akhtar at number 10 due to his lack of concentration on bowling length, sorry Akhtar!!
9. Ashish Nehra:
Ashish Nehra is a left-arm fast bowler in cricket from India. Since 1999, he has represented India at the international level. In 1999, he played his first test cricket against Sri Lanka at Colombo. In 2001, he played his first ODI against Zimbabwe at Harare. His performances are remarkable in the cricket matches. He also performed very well in the World Cup matches.
However, he did not make his place stronger in Indian team till 2006 due to his consecutive back and ankle injuries. In ODI cricket, his career statistics are improved than in Test cricket. Ashish Nehra is very good bowler at slow pitches but recently he has missed to play 1st ODI match of Cricket World Cup because of his fitness problem. Everyone is hoping that he will recover very soon and back in important tournament of ICC World Cup 2011.
8. Zaheer Khan:
Zaheer Khan is a Left arm fast-medium bowler from India. Since 2000, he has been a member of the Indian cricket team. He is famous for his ability to swing the ball in both ways and performs amazingly on flat pitches of the subcontinent. Zaheer Khan is also an initiator of the art of reverse swing bowling. He has records in both departments like bowling and the batting.
Zaheer Khan was forced to be out of the team due to his injuries during 2003 and 2004. He was dropped again in late 2005 after returning from injury. But he was recalled to the team as its leading pace bowler when he shown his strong performances on the domestic circuit. Zaheer Khan is fit to play in the World Cup 2011. He was the 4th highest wicket taker of the 2003 World Cup.
7. Stuart Broad:
Stuart Christopher John Broad is a right-arm seam bowler in cricket from England. He also performs as a left-handed batsman. He was chosen as the Cricket Writers' Club Young Cricketer of the Year in August 2006. England won the 2010 ICC World T20 with the help of instrumental bowling of Stuart Broad.
Stuart Broad played very well in the test matches and ODI and helped England in winning. Recently, he took another five-wicket haul and England won their World Cup 2011 warm-up against Pakistan. He also made record as a batsman; he made the second-highest ever Test score, his first century in first-class cricket, against Pakistan in August 2010.
6. Brett Lee:
Brett Lee is a right-arm fast bowler from Australia. He played both matches like test and ODI for Australia. Besides a good bowler and lower-order batsman, he is an athletic fielder. Brett Lee was granted a scholarship to be present at the Australian Cricket Academy when he played for the Australian under 17 & 19 teams.
Lee was forced to be out of the Australian under-19 team to tour India because of stress fractures in his lower back in March 1994. But after that, he was selected to represent the “Australian A team” on a tour to South Africa. In January 2006, the ICC ranked Lee as the No. 1 ODI bowler in One-day Internationals.
5. Shane Bond:
Shane Bond is a right-arm fast bowler from New Zealand who plays for Warwickshire in English domestic cricket and Canterbury in New Zealand domestic cricket. He has faced many injuries, mainly recurring stress fractures of the back. Shane Bond has undergone back problems, knee injuries and an abdominal tear in recent years.
Shane Bond has limited appearances in both international and domestic cricket due to these problems, and a late start to his fully professional cricket career. He only appeared in 18 Test matches for New Zealand since his debut in 2001/02 season. In December 2009, Bond was retired from Test cricket at the age of 34. Bond was chosen to play in the 3rd season of the Indian Premier League for the Kolkata Knight Riders in January 2010.
4. D.E. Bollinger:
Douglas Erwin Bollinger is a left-arm fast bowler from Australia. At present, first-class cricket for the New South Wales Blues and international cricket for Australia are played by D.E. Bollinger. He also plays as a left-handed batsman. He picked up a hat-trick in dismissing the Redbacks' brittle top order in an ING Cup match against South Australia in the 2004–05 season.
Bollinger played his first ODI five-wicket haul against Pakistan at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on 1 May 2009. He was awarded with Man of the Match award in his first ODI match as he picked up 5/35. D.E. Bollinger has played very well and helped Australia in winning the ODI. He also played for the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League.
3. Mitchell Johnson:
Mitchell Guy Johnson is a left-arm fast bowler in cricket from Australia. He also plays as left-handed batsman. Over 90 wickets are taken by Johnson in his first 21 Tests. On 2 October 2009, he was awarded with the International Cricket Council's 2009 "Cricketer of the Year" award, and the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy. He was identified by the former Test fast-bowler Dennis Lillee as an "once-in-a-lifetime prospect".
Johnson scored his first ever Test half-century, against India in Perth, on 19 January 2008. He has played very well and helped Australia in winning the test, ODI and IPL matches.
2. Umar Gul:
Umar Gul is a right arm fast medium bowler from Pakistan. Test matches, One Day Internationals and Twenty20 series have been played by Umar Gul for the Pakistani cricket team. He became famous as the leading wicket taker and as one of the most successful bowlers in Twenty20 cricket. Umar Gul began playing First-Class cricket due to his stunning and shinning performances.
Gul made his place on the international front after playing just 9 Class-A matches. He started the hard-ball game after taking part in every local tape-ball tournament and he soon became a ground-breaking pacer. 34 Tests, 80 ODIs and 34 T20s have been played by Umar Gul during his 8 year old career. 125 Test, 119 ODI and 47 T20 wickets are included in his records.
1. Dale Steyn:
Dale Willem Steyn is a right-arm fast bowler in cricket from South Africa. Test and One Day International cricket have been played by him for South Africa. Steyn has made the record for the fastest player to reach 100 wickets in Test Match cricket. At present, Steyn is the number one ranked Test bowler in the world and he contains the third best bowling strike rate of all time in Test match cricket.
He played his first test match for South Africa at England's tour on 17 December 2004. Dale Steyn has made great performance due to his incredible passion and intensity. The bowling technique of Steyn is outstanding and his run up is controlled into the crease with an effortless running style. Dale is allowed to get into consistent and stable release positions by the basics, orthodox and side ways on his delivery stride.

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