Bowling the deliveries with express pace is an art in cricket. The fast bowlers have to give it all in the training to develop the mechanism of delivering the thunderbolts. There have been numerous express fast bowlers in the history of cricket. The only problem is that the technology of speedometer arrived later in the sports of cricket.
This is the reason why many fast deliveries delivered in the history of cricket are not recorded in the list. However, the fast bowling in cricket was spiced up as soon as the speedometer arrived in the circuit. The fans of their teams always have a look at the speedometer to know the pace of their fast bowlers. Whenever the pace bowler delivered the fastest balls in cricket, the deliveries made the top sports headlines.
There are lots of factors that determine the caliber of a fast bowler. The pace of the deliveries is certainly the thing that stands out among the other traits of a bowler. I mean who would not like a scintillating bouncer delivered with the speed of 155 km/h against the best batsmen? So let’s just know about the players who did this job. The marvels who have conquered the list of delivering the fastest balls in cricket. By the way, you can go to the best online sportsbook sites in Australia to find out which fast bowler stands the highest chance of delivering the fastest ball in the future.
1- 161.3 km/h by Shoaib Akhtar – Pakistan
Pakistan is regarded as the land of splendid fast bowlers. It is renowned for producing pace bowlers who bowl fast and swing both ways. The combination is tremendously lethal in the bowling favorable conditions. So the fastest delivery in the history of cricket originated from Pakistan. Akhtar was expressed up to the extent that he was given the title of ‘Rawalpindi Express’.
In the ODI World Cup 2003, the grandest stage of the World Cup, Akhtar shocked the world by delivering the best of the fastest balls in cricket. In the game between Pakistan vs England at Cape Town, Shoaib Akhtar bowled a delivery with a phenomenal pace of 161.3 km/h. The record has been unbroken for 18 years and no bowler has touched his legacy. Shoaib Akhtar is one of the best fast bowlers in the history of cricket. Akhar has taken more than 400 wickets in international cricket.
2- 161.1 km/h by Brett Lee – Australia
Brett Lee was a marvelous fast bowler who amazed and astonished the world with his express pace. He was a permanent part of the Australian bowling line-up during his peak years. Not only did he bowl with express pace, but took many wickets with his phenomenal line and length.
Lee delivered the thunderbolt of 161. km/h against New Zealand in 2005. He was extremely close to breaking the record of the fastest delivery held by Shoaib Akhtar. Brett Lee has taken more than 600 international cricket for Australia. He is certainly the fastest bowler in the history of Australian Cricket.
3- 161.1 km/h by Shaun Tait – Australia
Another name on the list is from Australia. The Australian fast bowler Shaun Tait created terror in the modern era with his express pace. Shaun Tait delivered the spectacular ball with a speed of 161.1 km/h against the Australian rival side England.
Tait not only used to bowl with great pace but did the job consistently. Even though he delivered the balls with extreme pace, the problem in his line and length drove him towards costing runs. For this reason, Tait never became a regular part of the Australian bowling side. However, his domestic records have been fantastic and currently, he is serving as the bowling coach of Afghanistan.
4- 160.6 km/h by Jeffrey Thomson – Australia
There is no surprise reading the name of another Australian on the list. The top four of the list of fastest balls in cricket are taken by the fast bowling troops of Australian cricket. Thomson delivered the deliveries with an amazing pace in the era when the gears of the batsmen did not have the extra protection.
So you could imagine the terror and the dread created by Thomson in that era. The batsmen used to be cautious facing his spectacular deliveries. Thomson bowled with the lightning speed of 160.6 km/h against West Indies at Perth way back in 1975. He has taken more than 250 wickets in international cricket.
5- 160.4 km/h by Mitchell Starc – Australia
You might be wondering that the list is raided by the Australian fast bowlers. Starc has won the Cricket World Cup for Australia with his express pace delivered with the ingredients of swing and seam. The full-length deliveries of Starc delivered with extreme pace is an uphill task for the batsmen to play. Starc delivered with the ball with a lightning pace of 160.4 km/h against New Zealand at WACA in 2015.
He is regarded as one of the fine bowlers in modern-era cricket. Starc has already taken more than 400 wickets in international cricket and there’s a lot of cricket left in him. If you to complete your bowling side, you must have the name of Mitchell Starc on the roster.
6- 159.5 km/h by Andy Roberts – West Indies
The West Indian fast bowlers brought a revolution to the dynamics of fast bowling. The Windian fast bowlers were tall and used to come with extreme pace against the batsmen in the 20th century. One such name who created terror with his fast bowling skills is Andy Roberts.
West Indies has won the ODI World Cup twice, and Robers was a part of both the winning squads. The phenomenal fast bowler delivered the ball with a pace of 159.5 km/h against Australia at WACA. Robert has taken 202 Test wickets with a splendid bowling average of 25.61.
7- 157.7 km/h by Fidel Edwards – West Indies
Edwards delivered one of the fastest balls in cricket (157.7 km/h) against South Africa. During his peak, Edwards is a difficult customer for batsmen as his bowling action is tough to pick for the batsmen. Edwards did not play too many matches at the international level but carries a great domestic record. He has taken 455 wickets in first-class cricket. The celebration of Edwards after taking the wicket of a batsman is quite famous. On his day, Edwards can trouble the best of the batsmen with his extreme pace. He is not by any means a bad choice in your playing eleven.
8- 156.8 km/h by Mitchell Johnson – Australia
Mitchell Johnson was a fantastic pace bowler, especially on the bouncing track. If the conditions are favorable for the fast bowlers, it is never to pick a player like Johnson. He has destroyed the batting line-up of the teams with his lightning pace.
The Ashes 2013 was his peak where he took more than 30 wickets in a single series. The English batsmen just could not face his extreme pace. Johnson delivered the firebolt of 156.8 km/h in The Ashes in 2013 at Melbourne Cricket Ground. The winning roster of the Cricket World Cup 2015 had the name of Johnson on it. He produces phenomenal performances in international cricket. Johnson has taken more than 500 wickets in the international circuit.
9 – 156.4 km/h by Mohammad Sami – Pakistan
Mohammad Sami is another name from the land of fast bowling marvels. Sami could never fulfill his potential in international cricket but he grabbed the attention of the cricket pundits with his express pace. He bowled one of the fastest balls in cricket (156.4 km/h) against Zimbabwe in Pakistan in 2013.
During his initial years, he was seen as the next big thing in Pakistan cricket. However, his pace could never resolve his line and length. Despite bowling the deliveries with express pace, Sami used to concede runs at a great run rate. Sami has taken more than 200 wickets for Pakistan in international cricket.
10- 156.4 km/h by Shane Bond – New Zealand
Shane Bond was a classic fast bowler. He was one of a few bowlers who not only bowled with express pace but hit the deck with beautiful line and length. In his peak days, he was extremely difficult to pick for the batsmen. According to the cricket pundits, the injuries cost his career. Otherwise, he would’ve been one of the greatest fast bowlers in cricket. In his short career, Bond created a tremendous impact with the ball. He has taken 147 wickets in ODI cricket with a marvelous bowling average of 20.88.
Bond delivered the ball with the extreme pace of 156 km/h against India in the Cricket World Cup 2003. By the way, the odds are favoring which fast bowler in terms of delivering the fastest ball at the grandest stage of the World Cup? You can go to the best online sportsbook sites in the UK to find out.
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