World Cup 2023: The five greatest bowling performances

Australia emerged victorious for the sixth time in the history of the ICC World Cup 2023. They defeated the Indian team in the competition final on November 19, 2023, in the summit match that was held in Ahmedabad. This ended the Indian team’s incredible run of winning all ten games.

With three fifers and a four-fer under his belt, Mohammad Shami emerged as the leading wicket-taker, having claimed 24 scalps in just seven outings. There were plenty of other bowlers who performed admirably for their teams since the World Cup 2023 offered bowlers surfaces that helped them. Additionally, a number of bowlers made noteworthy performances.

We then selected the top five bowling performances from the ICC World Cup 2023.

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The World Cup 2023’s top 5 bowling performances are as follows:

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5. Tabraiz Shamsi, 4/60

This match in Chennai was vital for both teams, as South Africa and Pakistan faced off. With South Africa’s penchant for misfiring during run chases, Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bat first. With 50 from the captain and 52 from Saud Shakeel, the Men in Green scored 270.

If it weren’t for Tabraiz Shamsi, the total might have been much higher and possibly beyond 300 runs. With Keshav Maharaj and Shamsi, the Proteas read the pitch effectively. Barring Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, and the dangerous Iftikhar Ahmed, Shamsi, the left-arm wrist spinner, claimed four wickets.

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4. Adam Zampa, 4/47

Australia had already suffered two straight losses to South Africa and India going into this match against Sri Lanka. After winning the toss, Sri Lanka decided to bat first. The side got off to a strong start thanks to fifty-score opening duo Kusal Perera and Pathum Nissanka.

But Adam Zampa intervened and hampered the momentum of the Sri Lankan team. Kusal Mendis was taken out for nine, and Sadeera Samarawickrama was taken out for just eight. then ran a 25-run trap on Charith Asalanka, causing Sri Lanka to collapse to 209. After Australia triumphed by five wickets, Zampa finished with 4/47 and was named Player of the Match.

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3. Ravindra Jadeja, 5/33

The Men in Blue were unbeaten and the Proteas had only dropped a single game going into their big-wig encounter against South Africa. In Kolkata, after winning the toss, India elected to bat first and amassed 326/5. Rohit Sharma had given a brilliant start with 40 in 24 balls, while Virat Kohli made 101* and Shreyas Iyer made 77.

The way South Africa was batting was to be expected, but it all fell apart in front of the Indian bowlers. Ravindra Jadeja was the standout bowler, taking two wickets apiece against Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Shami. With the cheap scalps of David Miller and the deadly Heinrich Klaasen, he picked 5/33.

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2. Shaheen Afridi, 5/54

There were plenty of runs on the line when Australia and Pakistan squared off in a crucial match in Bengaluru. Having won the toss, Australia was put to the test by Babar Azam. With opening partner Mitchell Marsh scoring 123 and David Warner smashing 163, they amassed 259 runs for the first wicket. Between them, they hammered 18 sixes. In 50 overs, Australia managed to score 367/9; however, without Shaheen Afridi, the total would have reached 400 or higher.

After a subpar opening over, Afridi bowled extraordinarily effectively, taking 5/54, which included wickets of Mitchell Marsh, Josh Hazlewood, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, and Mitchell Starc. Australia was prevented from achieving what could have been a record-breaking total by Shaheen’s outstanding bowling performance at the end.

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1. Mohammad Shami, 7/57

When India advanced to the ICC World Cup 2023 semifinals, Mohammad Shami was a different story. Rohit Sharma won the toss and chose to bat first as they took on their archrivals New Zealand in Mumbai in the opening knockout encounter. India made 397/4 in 50 overs thanks to scores of 117 from Virat Kohli, his 50th ODI century, 80 from Shubman Gill, and 105 from Shreyas Iyer in just 70 balls.

Mohammad Shami, in response, ripped through the batting order of New Zealand. Even though Daryl Mitchell (134) and Kane Williamson (69) looked like they could steal the game from India, Shami dismissed both batters en route to recording career-best figures of 7/57. In addition, this was the first seven-wicket performance in World Cup and ODI cricket by an Indian bowler.