Top 20 ODI Fast Bowlers Against Top Teams

Our One Day International (ODI) ratings take into account all matches from the first ODI match on January 5, 1971 till the below mentioned last update date. Most of our ratings are dynamic, and as new matches are played, the rating of earlier bowlers may change if current bowlers set new benchmarks. Brief explanation of the ratings is given before each section (Detailed Explanation). So, here are the Top 20 Fast bowlers against Top Teams in ODIs.

*Note: All ODI Ratings are updated till 2025-09-15

CONTENTS

4.1. Against Top Teams

5. ECONOMIC

5.1. Against Top Teams

6. BEST BOWLING BY WKTS (TT)

7. BEST BOWLING BY ECO (TT)

8. TOP TEAMS RATING

9. TOP TEAMS

TT RATING

Points to note about TOP TEAMS Rating:-

Win/Loss Ratio is used to determine Top Teams.
The Top Teams are calculated by decades.
A batsman's performace is counted in TT if it comes against that team in the specific decade.
Knock Out and Super Six matches of ODI World Cup are also counted in TT.
Top Teams may be found in the last section.

THE CRITERIA

The TOP TEAMS Rating is divided into 5 main sections:-

CRITERIA	STAT	POINTS
Prolific	Wickets Taken	250.00
Consistent	Average	200.00
Economic	Strike Rate	200.00
Best Bowling	Top Inns (Wkts)	200.00
Economic Bowling	Top Inns (Eco)	150.00

The Trend Setter (TS)

TS is the player which does the best in a criteria. The rating of all other players are calculated taking the TS as the benchmark. Know All About TS. Here is an example:-

TS Ave: 25.00; Player X Ave: 30.00; Section Points: 300.00
TS Points: 300.00(Max); Player X Points: TS Ave/Ave X 300 = 25.00/30.00 X 300 = 250.00
Ratings of all sections are calculated similarly with Ave being replaced by the Criteria Stat.

QUALIFICATION

Min Innings (TT)	15
Min Career Wkts	50

PROLIFIC

The Eras

The time period from 1971 to present is divided into eras for this section. This is because less cricket was played earlier. To make it fair for earlier players they are compared with players of the same period with a slight reduction in points. Know More About Eras.

Era 1	MP before 1991
Era 2	MP between 1990 And 2011
Era 3	MP greater than 2010

Criteria: Points For Wickets Taken

RANK	ERA 1	NAT	FP	LP	MP	INNS	WKTS	RAT
TS	N Kapil Dev	IND	1978	1994	1986	176	199	200.00
1	N Kapil Dev	IND	1978	1994	1986	176	199	200.00
2	Imran Khan	PAK	1974	1992	1983	131	156	156.78
3	MD Marshall	WI	1980	1992	1986	118	148	148.74
4	J Garner	WI	1977	1987	1982	91	139	139.70
5	MA Holding	WI	1976	1987	1981.5	95	127	127.64
6	RJ Hadlee	NZ	1973	1990	1981.5	90	124	124.62

RANK	ERA 2	NAT	FP	LP	MP	INNS	WKTS	RAT
TS	Wasim Akram	PAK	1984	2003	1993.5	264	370	250.00
1	Wasim Akram	PAK	1984	2003	1993.5	264	370	250.00
2	WPUJC Vaas	SL	1994	2008	2001	247	298	201.35
3	B Lee	AUS	2000	2012	2006	167	293	197.97
4	Waqar Younis	PAK	1989	2003	1996	191	292	197.30
5	GD McGrath	AUS	1993	2007	2000	185	281	189.86
6	SM Pollock	SA	1996	2008	2002	205	265	179.05
7	JM Anderson	ENG	2002	2015	2008.5	146	206	139.19
8	Shoaib Akhtar	PAK	1998	2011	2004.5	130	197	133.11
9	M Ntini	SA	1998	2009	2003.5	126	196	132.43
10	CEL Ambrose	WI	1988	2000	1994	142	190	128.38
11	SE Bond	NZ	2002	2010	2006	62	113	76.35

RANK	ERA 3	NAT	FP	LP	MP	INNS	WKTS	RAT
TS	SL Malinga	SL	2004	2019	2011.5	179	261	220.00
1	SL Malinga	SL	2004	2019	2011.5	179	261	220.00
2	MA Starc	AUS	2010	2024	2017	93	165	139.08
3	TA Boult	NZ	2012	2023	2017.5	87	157	132.34

CONSISTENT

R Ave

Relative Average (R Ave) is a more accurate type of average. Know How It Is Calculated. Briefly it takes into account:-

Strength of Opposition.
Venues at which a bowler has played.
Time Period in which he has been active

Criteria: Points For R Ave

Min Qualification For TS
Min Wickets	50

Against Top Teams

RANK	BOWLER	INNS	RUNS	WKTS	AVE	R AVE	RAT
TS	J Garner	91	2615	139	18.81	20.65	200.00
1	J Garner	91	2615	139	18.81	20.65	200.00
2	SE Bond	62	2500	113	22.12	20.92	197.40
3	GD McGrath	185	6513	281	23.18	23.40	176.49
4	CEL Ambrose	142	4483	190	23.59	23.68	174.39
5	B Lee	167	7012	293	23.93	23.97	172.26
6	MA Holding	95	2801	127	22.06	24.22	170.51
7	RJ Hadlee	90	2862	124	23.08	24.42	169.14
8	MA Starc	93	4311	165	26.13	24.50	168.53
9	Wasim Akram	264	9199	370	24.86	24.58	168.01
10	TA Boult	87	4155	157	26.46	24.99	165.27
11	Shoaib Akhtar	130	5241	197	26.60	25.04	164.90
12	M Ntini	126	5054	196	25.79	25.29	163.27
13	Waqar Younis	191	7619	292	26.09	25.96	159.10
14	SM Pollock	205	6997	265	26.40	26.12	158.11
15	N Kapil Dev	176	5476	199	27.52	26.21	157.56
16	MD Marshall	118	3754	148	25.36	26.39	156.48
17	JM Anderson	146	6062	206	29.43	27.24	151.59
18	Imran Khan	131	4284	156	27.46	27.97	147.64
19	WPUJC Vaas	247	8905	298	29.88	28.37	145.59
20	SL Malinga	179	8295	261	31.78	29.98	137.73

ECONOMIC

R ER

Relative Economy Rate (R ER) for bowlers is calculated using the same method as R Ave with average being replaced with ER.

Criteria: Points For R ER

Min Qualification For TS
Min Balls	1000

Against Top Teams

RANK	BOWLER	INNS	BLS	RUNS	ER	R ER	RAT
TS	J Garner	91	4970	2615	3.16	3.58	200.00
1	J Garner	91	4970	2615	3.16	3.58	200.00
2	SM Pollock	205	10887	6997	3.86	3.62	197.81
3	CEL Ambrose	142	7635	4483	3.52	3.65	196.03
4	MA Holding	95	5035	2801	3.34	3.79	189.18
5	GD McGrath	185	9806	6513	3.99	3.83	186.86
6	MD Marshall	118	6353	3754	3.55	3.86	185.35
7	N Kapil Dev	176	8892	5476	3.70	3.87	185.25
8	RJ Hadlee	90	4928	2862	3.48	3.94	181.65
9	Wasim Akram	264	13881	9199	3.98	3.99	179.69
10	SE Bond	62	3381	2500	4.44	3.99	179.61
11	WPUJC Vaas	247	12170	8905	4.39	4.14	173.11
12	TA Boult	87	4793	4155	5.20	4.20	170.39
13	Imran Khan	131	6484	4284	3.96	4.21	169.90
14	JM Anderson	146	7362	6062	4.94	4.26	167.91
15	MA Starc	93	4838	4311	5.35	4.32	165.82
16	M Ntini	126	6376	5054	4.76	4.34	164.81
17	B Lee	167	8738	7012	4.81	4.36	164.35
18	Shoaib Akhtar	130	6345	5241	4.96	4.47	160.02
19	SL Malinga	179	8971	8295	5.55	4.68	152.98
20	Waqar Younis	191	9419	7619	4.85	4.77	150.24

BEST BOWLING BY WKTS (TT)

BBW

In this criteria, we have taken the top 5 bowling performances by Wkts of a bowler. Best Bowling By Wickets (BBW) is simply the total wickets taken in the 5 innings divided by 5.

Criteria: Points For Wkts Taken In Top 5 Inns

RANK	BOWLER	1	2	3	4	5	BBW	RAT
TS	Waqar Younis	7/36	6/26	6/59	5/25	5/31	5.80	200.00
1	Waqar Younis	7/36	6/26	6/59	5/25	5/31	5.80	200.00
2	MA Starc	6/28	6/43	5/26	5/42	5/53	5.40	186.21
3	SM Pollock	6/35	5/20	5/23	5/36	5/37	5.20	179.31
3	SE Bond	6/19	6/23	5/23	5/25	4/26	5.20	179.31
5	GD McGrath	5/14	5/27	5/37	5/40	5/49	5.00	172.41
5	M Ntini	6/22	5/21	5/31	5/37	4/33	5.00	172.41
5	Shoaib Akhtar	6/16	5/19	5/25	5/54	4/28	5.00	172.41
5	B Lee	5/22	5/27	5/27	5/30	5/38	5.00	172.41
5	SL Malinga	5/28	5/34	5/44	5/52	5/54	5.00	172.41
5	TA Boult	6/33	5/17	5/21	5/27	4/27	5.00	172.41
11	RJ Hadlee	5/26	5/32	5/32	5/38	4/15	4.80	165.52
11	CEL Ambrose	5/17	5/26	5/32	5/53	4/29	4.80	165.52
13	J Garner	5/31	5/38	5/47	4/10	4/45	4.60	158.62
13	Wasim Akram	5/16	5/21	5/38	4/18	4/24	4.60	158.62
15	WPUJC Vaas	5/14	5/39	4/33	4/48	4/56	4.40	151.72
15	JM Anderson	5/23	5/34	4/18	4/18	4/23	4.40	151.72
17	Imran Khan	6/14	4/27	4/37	4/37	3/13	4.20	144.83
17	MA Holding	5/26	4/17	4/17	4/26	4/32	4.20	144.83
19	N Kapil Dev	5/43	4/30	4/31	4/54	3/17	4.00	137.93
19	MD Marshall	4/18	4/23	4/33	4/34	4/34	4.00	137.93

BEST BOWLING BY ECO (TT)

BBE

In this criteria, we have taken the top 5 bowling performances by Economy of a bowler. Best Bowling By Economy (BBE) is the Relative Economy of the bowler in the 5 Inns. Only 30+ Balls performaces are counted in this criteria.

Criteria: Points For Economy In Top 5 Inns

RANK	BOWLER	1	2	3	4	5	BBE	RAT
TS	CEL Ambrose	10.0/5	5.0/4	8.4/9	6.0/8	8.5/13	1.05	150.00
1	CEL Ambrose	10.0/5	5.0/4	8.4/9	6.0/8	8.5/13	1.05	150.00
2	SM Pollock	10.0/9	9.5/12	8.0/10	7.0/9	10.0/13	1.11	141.96
3	Wasim Akram	7.2/4	6.0/7	8.0/11	7.0/10	7.0/10	1.19	132.24
4	N Kapil Dev	7.0/4	6.0/5	6.0/7	6.0/9	9.0/15	1.23	128.01
5	WPUJC Vaas	7.0/8	8.0/10	10.0/13	8.0/11	9.3/14	1.24	126.90
6	J Garner	6.0/6	6.0/6	7.5/9	6.0/7	9.0/11	1.27	124.07
7	GD McGrath	10.0/8	10.0/13	9.0/13	8.4/14	9.4/16	1.30	121.17
8	JM Anderson	10.0/12	7.0/10	8.0/14	9.3/20	8.3/18	1.49	106.05
9	B Lee	6.0/5	8.0/8	8.0/14	8.2/18	10.0/22	1.50	104.81
10	Imran Khan	9.5/13	10.0/14	7.0/11	8.0/13	8.0/14	1.61	97.65
11	MD Marshall	6.0/5	5.0/7	5.0/8	7.2/13	10.0/18	1.67	94.50
12	RJ Hadlee	6.0/6	5.0/7	8.0/13	9.1/15	9.0/15	1.70	92.43
13	MA Holding	5.3/5	10.0/15	5.0/8	6.0/10	8.4/15	1.71	92.18
14	Shoaib Akhtar	9.0/16	10.0/18	5.0/10	6.0/12	10.0/23	1.78	88.35
15	Waqar Younis	5.0/7	8.0/13	7.0/13	10.0/20	7.0/15	1.80	87.29
16	SE Bond	5.0/7	10.0/19	10.0/21	9.0/19	10.0/23	1.82	86.67
17	SL Malinga	8.0/14	7.0/14	9.0/21	9.2/22	7.0/17	1.84	85.58
18	M Ntini	7.0/12	7.0/13	10.0/20	10.0/22	10.0/23	1.87	84.31
19	TA Boult	10.0/21	7.2/17	10.0/25	10.0/25	10.0/27	1.96	80.26
20	MA Starc	7.0/12	8.0/20	9.4/26	9.0/27	9.0/28	2.14	73.65

TOP TEAMS RATING

The TOP TEAMS (TT) Rating is the addition of the points of all the above criteria. The rating is out of 1,000.

RANK	BOWLER	PRO	CON	ECO	BBW	BBE	TT RAT
1	Wasim Akram	250.00	168.01	179.69	158.62	132.24	888.57
2	SM Pollock	179.05	158.11	197.81	179.31	141.96	856.24
3	GD McGrath	189.86	176.49	186.86	172.41	121.17	846.80
4	J Garner	139.70	200.00	200.00	158.62	124.07	822.39
5	CEL Ambrose	128.38	174.39	196.03	165.52	150.00	814.32
6	B Lee	197.97	172.26	164.35	172.41	104.81	811.81
7	N Kapil Dev	200.00	157.56	185.25	137.93	128.01	808.75
8	WPUJC Vaas	201.35	145.59	173.11	151.72	126.90	798.67
9	Waqar Younis	197.30	159.10	150.24	200.00	87.29	793.93
10	SL Malinga	220.00	137.73	152.98	172.41	85.58	768.71
11	RJ Hadlee	124.62	169.14	181.65	165.52	92.43	733.36
12	MA Starc	139.08	168.53	165.82	186.21	73.65	733.28
13	MA Holding	127.64	170.51	189.18	144.83	92.18	724.34
14	MD Marshall	148.74	156.48	185.35	137.93	94.50	723.00
15	TA Boult	132.34	165.27	170.39	172.41	80.26	720.67
16	SE Bond	76.35	197.40	179.61	179.31	86.67	719.34
17	Shoaib Akhtar	133.11	164.90	160.02	172.41	88.35	718.78
18	M Ntini	132.43	163.27	164.81	172.41	84.31	717.23
19	Imran Khan	156.78	147.64	169.90	144.83	97.65	716.80
20	JM Anderson	139.19	151.59	167.91	151.72	106.05	716.46