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Fazalhaq Farooqi (L) and Jasprit Bumrah (R) (Source: AFP)
Cricket is often called the batters’ game, but there are matches and tournaments like the T20 World Cup. In the rich history of outstanding batting performances at the prestigious cricket biennial, there have also been bowlers who have showcased their excellence under immense pressure.
Be it conceding runs with a low economy rate or taking wickets at regular intervals to break the opponent’s core, bowlers have been a vital cog in the wheel for the teams that found a bit of success in the T20 World Cup history.
Hence, here, we’ll have a look at the five bowlers with the most wickets in a single edition of the tournament.
5 Bowlers with most wickets in a T20 World Cup edition
Fazalhaq Farooqi (Afghanistan) - 17 wickets, T20 World Cup 2024
The 2024 edition was the best-ever World T20 outing for Afghanistan as they made their first-ever appearance in the semi-finals of the tournament. In their journey to the knockouts, the star pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi was one of the key protagonists with his outstanding bowling performances throughout the team's campaign.
Farooqi played eight games for his side in the 2024 edition, picking 17 wickets with a decent economy rate of 6.31, including a four-wicket haul and a five-wicket haul. He ended up as the joint-leading wicket-taker in the tournament, alongside India’s Arshdeep Singh.
Nonetheless, the Afghanistan pacer topped the list owing to his brilliant bowling strike rate of 8.94. It also included his best bowling figure of ‘five wickets for just nine runs’ in the game against Uganda. Farooqi also leads the chart of the bowlers with the most wickets in a single World T20 edition.
Arshdeep Singh (India) - 17 wickets, T20 World Cup 2024
India’s leading wicket-taker of all time in T20Is, Arshdeep Singh, was also one of the vital cogs in the wheel in the team's title-winning run in the 2024 edition. He was the joint-leading wicket-taker in the tournament.
The left-arm pacer claimed 17 wickets in eight innings of the eight games he played. Arshdeep conceded runs with an economy rate of 7.16 and a bowling strike rate of 10.58, including a four-wicket haul.
His best performance came against the USA in India’s campaign opener, when he finished with the figures of ‘four wickets for just nine runs in his four overs’. Arshdeep ranks second in the list of the bowlers with the highest number of wickets in a single T20 World Cup edition.
Wanindu Hasaranga (Sri Lanka) - 16 wickets, T20 World Cup 2021
The star Sri Lankan spinner Wanindu Hasaranga amazed everyone with his sensational performances in the World T20 2021 in the United Arab Emirates. He was the leading wicket-taker of the tournament.
The Galle-born leggie picked 16 wickets in eight innings of the eight games he played for the Islanders in this edition. Besides that, he conceded runs with a brilliant economy rate of just 5.20 and a bowling strike rate of 11.25.
In this edition, Hasaranga produced his best performance in the game against the Netherlands, in which he picked three wickets for just nine runs in three overs. The 28-year-old is placed at the third spot in the list of bowlers with the most wickets in a single edition.
Jasprit Bumrah (India) - 15 wickets, T20 World Cup 2024
India’s World T20 champion pacer, Jasprit Bumrah, was a key element in India’s title win in the 2024 edition. He recorded the best economy rate among the bowlers who played at least five matches in the tournament. Besides that, Bumrah ended up as the third leading wicket-taker in the tournament.
He claimed 15 wickets in eight innings, with an astonishing economy rate of just 4.17 and a strike rate of 11.86, including his best performance of ‘three wickets for just seven runs in a game’. Bumrah is fourth in the list of bowlers with the most wickets in a single World T20 edition.
Ajantha Mendis (Sri Lanka) - 15 wickets, T20 World Cup 2012
Sri Lanka’s former mystery spinner, Ajantha Mendis, was one of the unplayable bowlers in his active days. He was the leading wicket-taker of the tournament in the World T20 2012 and played a pivotal role in helping his side reach the final, where they finished as the runners-up.
Speaking of Mendis, he bowled a spell against Zimbabwe in the 2012 edition, which is still the best-ever bowling figure in a match in the entire World T20 history. In this spell, Mendis dismissed six Zimbabwean batters, conceding just eight runs in his entire four-over spell, including two maiden overs.
In the entire edition, he picked 15 wickets in six innings with an economy rate of 6.12 and a bowling strike rate of 9.60, including a four-wicket haul and a five-wicket haul. Ajantha Mendis is ranked fifth in the list of bowlers with most wickets in a single edition of the T20 World Cup.
