Afghanistan cricket team’s star spinner Rashid Khan has taken the fastest 100 wickets in ODI cricket so far, scalping a century of wickets in just 44 matches. The closest to him is Australian pace bowler Mitchell Starc, who managed to attain the milestone in 52 games.
Unlike Test cricket, where bowlers have an undue advantage early on, or in T20 cricket, where batsmen must take risks to score more in limited deliveries, ODI cricket allows batsmen the perfect blend of time and opportunity to stall and accelerate their innings. Hence, taking wickets in the 50-over format becomes all the more difficult.
Among Indian bowlers, Mohammed Shami has taken the fastest 100 wickets and is followed by the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Irfan Pathan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Zaheer Khan and more.
10. Imran Tahir (South Africa)
The first name on the list is the South African leg spinner, Imran Tahir. Famous for his googly, Tahir is one of the most dangerous bowlers in limited-overs cricket. He comes tenth on the list of fastest to 100 ODI wickets. He took 100 wickets in 58 ODIs.
9. Jasprit Bumrah (India)
For a long time, India lacked quality fast bowlers who could take wickets even in flat tracks. Then came the era of Bumrah and Shami. Bumrah comes at number nine on the list of fastest 100 wickets in ODI. He achieved the feat in 57 matches.
8. Mohammad shami (India)
Just above Bumrah is his partner in crime, Muhammed Shami. Famous for his ability to reverse swing and his raw pace, Shami is an incredible asset to India. Shami is number eight on the list with 100 wickets in 56 matches.
7. Trent Boult (New Zealand)
Tied with Shami with 56 matches to take 100 wickets is the left-arm pace bowler Trent Boult. Boult has been the number one ranked bowler for a long time and it seems unlikely he will lose his position any time soon. He comes number seventh in the list.
6. Brett Lee (Australia)
Famous for the second-fastest delivery ever against New Zealand in 2005, Brett Lee was a real threat. His explosive pace could beat through the defence of the best batsmen in the world.
He comes number six on the list of fastest to 100 wickets in ODI. It took him only 55 matches to reach the milestone.
5. Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh)
The greatest bowler ever to come out of the Bangladesh cricket team, Mustafizur Rahman is the only bowler to be in the top 30 list of bowlers fastest to reach 100 ODI wickets. Making his ODI debut in 2015, it had taken him four years to get to 100 wickets.
Rahman’s pacey leg spin has completely bamboozled numerous batsmen in international cricket as the Bangladeshi pacer took just 54 games to take 100 scalps. It happened during the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup when Rahman took a whopping five-fer against Pakistan, albeit in a losing cause.
4. Shane Bond (Australia)
One of the fastest bowlers in cricket history, Shane Bond could instil fear into batsmen during his playing days with his sheer speed. The Canterbury-lad had made his ODI debut back in 2002 and took five long years to reach 100 wickets with the Black Caps. Bond got his 100th scalp during the 2007 Commonwealth Series – a tri-series between England, New Zealand and Australia – where the Kiwis were facing England. Bond had taken a brace in that match as New Zealand defeated England by 90 runs.
3. Saqlain Mushtaq (Pakistan)
The legendary Pakistani spinner had made his ODI debut back in 1995 and it had taken him less than two years to reach the milestone. It happened during the 1997 Independence Cup hosted by India, where Pakistan were playing a group match against Sri Lanka in Gwalior. Mushtaq ended up taking three wickets in 9.5 overs as Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka by 30 runs. Saqlain Mushtaq is followed by great bowlers like Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar.
2. Mitchell Starc (Australia)
Mitchell Starc has been an effective bowler for Australia across all three formats, but his efficacy reached newer heights in this limited overs format. Making his ODI debut back in 2010, Starc is the second fastest bowler to reach 100 wickets, a feat that came during Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka in 2016. Starc had taken three wickets in his 10 overs as the Aussies limited the hosts to 227 runs before winning the match by three wickets.
1.Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)
Debuting in the ODI format in 2015, Rashid Khan has been successful from the very beginning. He has taken a whopping 158 wickets in 83 matches at a strike rate of 26.8. His 100th scalp, however, came in an ODI match against West Indies during the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup qualifier. Rashid Khan’s sole wicket in that match was of Shai Hope as Afghanistan had limited the Men in Maroon to 204 before winning the match by seven wickets.
Read Also:- Top 5 Bowlers With Fastest 100 Wickets In ODI vs T20