They say T20 cricket is all about batsmen dominating the game. But have you ever thought about what if a bowler reduces the team to two or maybe three down in the very first over?
Thrilling to think the same, right? So, following are some bowlers who have been doing this thing, taking wickets in the very first over and making these T20i matches even more interesting.
Most Wickets in First Over in T20I Cricket
| Bowlers | Team | Wickets | Innings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Junaid Siddique | UAE | 26 | 63 |
| Shaheen Shah Afridi | Pakistan | 26 | 83 |
| Bilal Khan | Oman | 22 | 59 |
| Ali Dawood | Bahrain | 21 | 50 |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | India | 18 | 74 |
| Fazalhaq Farooqi | Afghanistan | 16 | 47 |
| Tim Southee | New Zealand | 16 | 55 |
| Angelo Mathews | Sri Lanka | 14 | 39 |
| David Willey | England | 14 | 37 |
| Arshdeep Singh | India | 13 | 45 |
| Richard Ngarava | Zimbabwe | 13 | 50 |
Key Insights on Opening Over Bowling Records in T20 Internationals
Leading Wicket-Takers in the First Over of T20I
Oman’s Bilal Khan became the first bowler to take 20 wickets in the first over in T20I cricket.
Pakistan’s Shaheen Shah Afridi became the first bowler from a full member nation to pick up 20 scalps in the first over in T20Is.
Tim Southee became the first bowler to grab 50 wickets in the powerplay overs in T20I cricket.
Best T20I Bowling Figures in the Opening Over
Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews and Namibia’s Ruben Trumpelmann have picked up the most first over wickets in a T20I innings.
Mathews took three wickets for one run (Xavier Marshall, Lendl Simmons, and Dwayne Bravo, all for ducks) in the opening over against the West Indies in the 2009 T20 World Cup semi-final.
Trumpelmann took three wickets for two runs in the first over against Scotland in 2021.
Most Economical Bowlers in the First Over in T20I
Bilal Khan, Pavandeep Singh (Malaysia), and Richard Ngarava (Zimbabwe) are the three bowlers with an economy of less than five in the first over in T20Is (minimum 10 wickets taken).
Pavandeerp Singh and Ali Dawood (Bahrain) are the two bowlers with an average below 13 in the first over in T20Is (minimum 10 wickets taken).
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Bilal Khan, and Junaid Khan have bowled more than 200 dot balls in the first over in T20Is. Bhuvi is also among the top 10 bowlers with the most wickets in the opening over in the IPL.
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