In the shortest format, the T20Is, the conditions and the format suit the batters more than the bowlers. With the shorter boundaries and the heavier bats, the fielders in T20I cricket, especially the boundary riders, are almost made ball gazers in most parts of the game.
Even then, there are champion bowlers who are able to register their dominance thanks to their priceless experiences and proficient tactics. This article will showcase the ones who have seen the most success with the ball in hand in this format.
This article will list the all-time leading wicket-takers in T20I cricket.
Most Wickets in T20Is
| Player | Innings | Wickets | Best Bowling (Innings) | Economy Rate | 4W/5W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rashid Khan (AFG) | 108 | 182 | 5/3 | 6.07 | 9/2 |
| Tim Southee (NZ) | 122 | 162 | 5/18 | 8.04 | 2/2 |
| Mustafizur Rahman (BAN) | 125 | 158 | 6/10 | 7.28 | 3/2 |
| Ish Sodhi (NZ) | 126 | 157 | 4/28 | 7.98 | 4/0 |
| Shakib Al Hasan (BAN) | 126 | 149 | 5/20 | 6.81 | 6/2 |
| Wanindu Hasaranga (SL) | 89 | 147 | 4/9 | 6.92 | 4/0 |
| Adil Rashid (ENG) | 127 | 145 | 4/2 | 7.48 | 3/0 |
| Adam Zampa (AUS) | 105 | 134 | 5/19 | 7.37 | 2/1 |
| Haris Rauf (PAK) | 92 | 133 | 4/18 | 8.38 | 5/0 |
| Ehsan Khan (HKG) | 97 | 132 | 4/5 | 6.28 | 5/0 |
You can also find the same list for ODIs and Tests in our respective blogs.
Key Insights on Premier Wicket Takers in T20I Cricket
Top Wicket-Takers and Fastest Milestones
Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan is the top wicket-taker in T20I cricket.
Rashid Khan is also the fastest bowler to take 100 wickets and 150 wickets in T20Is, achieving the feat in 53 and 92 matches, respectively.
Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga was the first bowler to pick up 100 wickets in T20I cricket, eclipsing the record in his 76th match in 2019.
New Zealand’s Tim Southee, meanwhile, was the first bowler to take 150 T20I wickets, doing so in his 118th match in 2024.
Jersey’s Charles Perchard has picked up the most wickets as a captain in T20I cricket.
Elite Bowling Performance Metrics (Average, Economy, Strike Rate)
Uganda’s Alpesh Ramjani is the only bowler to maintain an economy rate of less than five in T20Is (minimum 100 wickets).
Ramjani, Moazzam Baig (Malawi), and Dhruvkumar Maisuria (Botswana) are the three bowlers with bowling averages below 11 in T20Is (minimum 500 balls bowled).
Maisuria, Syazrul Idrus (Malaysia), Umair Tariq (Austria), Nalin Nipiko (Vanuatu), and Kuldeep Yadav (India) have strike rates below 12 in T20Is (minimum 500 balls bowled).
Phase-wise T20I Bowling Specialists
Southee picked up around 35 per cent (58) of his 164 wickets in the powerplay overs. He was the first to take 50 wickets in the powerplays in T20Is.
New Zealand’s Ish Sodhi has racked up around 83 per cent of his wickets in the middle overs in T20Is.
Bangladesh’s Mustafizur Rahman has taken the most wickets in the death overs in T20Is, with around 47 per cent of his career wickets coming in the slog overs.
Southee, Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan), and Arshdeep Singh (India) are the three bowlers with 50 or more wickets each in the powerplay and death overs in T20Is.
Home, Opponent, and Yearly Bowling Dominance in T20I
Southee took 91 of his 164 career wickets in New Zealand, the most by a bowler on home soil in T20Is.
Rashid Khan is the only bowler to pick up 30 or more wickets against three opponent teams – Ireland, Zimbabwe, and Bangladesh – in T20Is.
Bahrain’s Ali Dawood has taken the most wickets in a calendar year in T20Is. He fetched 63 scalps in 37 innings in 2025.
Best Figures, Five-fors, Four-fors in T20Is
Malaysia’s Syazrul Idrus has recorded the best bowling figures in a T20I innings. He returned with 7 wickets for 8 runs against China in a 2023 game.
Bahrain’s Rizwan Butt and Malawi’s Moazzam Baig are the two bowlers with three or more five-wicket hauls in T20Is.
Rashid Khan is the only bowler to grab more than 10 four-wicket hauls in the shortest format. He also leads the three-wicket hauls chart in this format.
