There’s quite nothing like playing in the ICC tournament. After all, it’s the top of the pyramid in world cricket.
So playing at the top comes with a lot of expectations and pressure. And it multiplies further if one has to play in a knockout match.
Bowlers tend to be under more pressure as their one spell can change the outcome of the do-or-die game. Across several ICC tournaments, we have seen bowlers overcome the odds and rack up crucial wickets.
This article will list the top 10 bowlers who have taken the most wickets in ICC tournament knockout matches.
| Player | Inns | Total Wkts | ODI WC | T20 WC | CT | WTC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muttiah Muralitharan (SL) | 15 | 23 | 12 | 4 | 7 | – |
| Glenn McGrath (AUS) | 14 | 22 | 15 | – | 7 | – |
| Mohammed Shami (IND) | 10 | 21 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| Mitchell Starc (AUS) | 11 | 20 | 13 | 3 | – | 4 |
| Trent Boult (NZ) | 11 | 19 | 10 | 4 | – | 5 |
| Zaheer Khan (IND) | 11 | 17 | 9 | – | 8 | – |
| Brett Lee (AUS) | 11 | 17 | 6 | – | 11 | – |
| Ravichandran Ashwin (IND) | 13 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Tim Southee (NZ) | 11 | 15 | 9 | 1 | – | 5 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | 14 | 15 | 4 | – | 11 | – |
(Note – ODI WC: ODI World Cup, T20 WC: T20 World Cup, CT: Champions Trophy, WTC: World Test Championship)
Most Runs as Captain in ICC Tournaments
Most Runs in Knock-Out Matches of ICC Tournaments
Highest Batting Average in ICC Tournaments
Most Fifties in ICC Tournaments
Most Fifties in Knock-Out Matches of ICC Tournaments
Most Centuries in ICC Tournaments
Most Centuries in Knock-Out Matches of ICC Tournaments
Most Wickets in ICC Tournaments
Most Wickets in in Knock-Out Matches of ICC Tournaments
Most Man of the Match Awards in ICC
Most Wins by Players in ICC Tournaments
23: Muttiah Muralitharan has taken the most wickets in ICC tournament knockout matches. The former Sri Lankan spinner picked up 23 wickets in 17 knockout matches.
1: Ravichandran Ashwin is the only bowler who has taken at least one wicket in each ICC tournament knockout match. The former off-spinner represented India in 12 knockout matches and picked up 16 wickets. He took five wickets in CT, four each in the T20 WC and WTC final, and three in the ODI WC.
7: Mohammed Shami has registered the best bowling figures in a knockout match in ICC tournaments. The Indian seamer claimed seven wickets for 57 runs against New Zealand in the 2023 World Cup semi-final. Shami’s figures are the best for India in ODIs and the fifth-best in the ODI World Cup.
Gary Gilmour is the only bowler to grab multiple five-wicket hauls in ICC tournament knockout matches. The former Australian pacer picked up 6 for 14 against England in the semi-final and 5 for 48 against West Indies in the final of the 1975 World Cup.
Apart from Shami and Gilmour, Joel Garner, Craig McDermott, Shaun Pollock, and Wahab Riaz have taken a five-wicket haul in the ODI WC knockouts.
New Zealand’s Kyle Jamieson is the only bowler with a fifer in the WTC final, while South Africa’s Jacques Kallis and New Zealand’s Shayne O’Connor picked up a fifer each in CT knockouts.
Nine bowlers have scalped 10 or more wickets in ODI WC knockouts, while only three bowlers have managed to surpass that mark in CT knockouts.
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