T20Is - Best Spin Bowlers Overall

Top 10 Spin Bowlers of All Time In T20Is

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Our T20 International (T20I) ratings take into account all matches from the first T20I match on February 17, 2005 till the below mentioned last update date.Brief explanation of the ratings is given before each section (Detailed Explanation). So, here are the Top 10 Spin bowlers in T20I cricket of all time.

*Note: All T20I Ratings are updated till 2025-10-12

CONTENTS
1. THE CRITERIA
2. QUALIFICATION
3. PRIMARY CRITERIA
3.1. PROLIFIC
3.2. CONSISTENT
3.2.1. Against All Teams
3.2.2. Against Top Teams
3.3. ECONOMIC
3.3.1. Against All Teams
3.3.2. Against Top Teams
3.4. BEST BOWLING BY WKTS (NWT)
3.5. BEST BOWLING BY ECO (NWT)
3.6. PRIMARY RATING
4. CONDITIONS CRITERIA
4.1. HOME/AWAY
4.1.1. At Home
4.1.2. Away From Home
4.2. FAVOURABLE/UNFAVOURABLE CONDITIONS
4.2.1. Favourable Conditions Rating
4.2.1.1. Non Asians In Asia
4.2.1.2. Asians In Asia
4.2.2. Unfavourable Conditions Rating
4.2.2.1. Non Asians Outside Asia
4.2.2.2. Asians Outside Asia
4.3. CONDITIONS RATING
5. SECONDARY CRITERIA
5.1. WORLD CUP
5.2. IMPACT INNINGS
5.3. TOP FORM
5.4. SECONDARY RATING
6. OVERALL RATING
7. NON WEAK TEAMS
8. TOP TEAMS

THE CRITERIA

CRITERIA CONSTITUENTS
Primary Wickets, Average, Economy, BBI (Wkts & Eco)
Conditions Home, Away, In Asia, Outside Asia
Secondary World Cup, Impact Inns, Top Form
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.
TT and NWT

Some sections consider performances only against the top teams (TT) and non weak teams (NWT). Here is some information:-

  • Win/Loss Ratio is used to determine TT and NWT.
  • They are calculated by decades.
  • A bowler's performace is counted in TT or NWT if it comes against that team in the specific decade.
  • Knock Out matches of T20 World Cup are also counted in TT.
  • TT & NWT may be found in the last section.

QUALIFICATION

Min Innings (TT) 25
Min Overall Wkts 25

PRIMARY CRITERIA

The OVERALL Rating is divided into 5 main sections:-

CRITERIA STAT POINTS
Prolific Wickets Taken 200.00
Consistent Average 250.00
Economic Strike Rate 250.00
Best Bowling Top Inns (Wkts) 100.00
Economic Bowling Top Inns (Eco) 200.00

PROLIFIC

Criteria: Points For Wickets Taken

RANK BOWLER NAT FP LP MP INNS WKTS RAT
TS Rashid Khan AFG 2015 2025 2020 106 179 200.00
1 Rashid Khan AFG 2015 2025 2020 106 179 200.00
2 AU Rashid ENG 2009 2025 2017 126 141 157.54
3 W Hasaranga SL 2019 2025 2022 83 139 155.31
4 A Zampa AUS 2016 2025 2020.5 104 131 146.37
5 MJ Santner NZ 2015 2025 2020 112 124 138.55
6 T Shamsi SA 2017 2024 2020.5 70 89 99.44
7 Kuldeep Yadav IND 2017 2025 2021 46 86 96.09
8 Saeed Ajmal PAK 2009 2015 2012 63 85 94.97
9 BAW Mendis SL 2008 2014 2011 39 66 73.74
10 Imran Tahir SA 2013 2019 2016 38 63 70.39

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 Relative Average

Min Qualification For TS
Min Wickets 50
Min Wickets (TT) 30

Against All Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS RUNS WKTS AVE R AVE RAT
TS Kuldeep Yadav 46 1129 86 13.13 14.31 100.00
1 Kuldeep Yadav 46 1129 86 13.13 14.31 100.00
2 Imran Tahir 38 948 63 15.05 14.46 98.96
3 BAW Mendis 39 952 66 14.42 15.43 92.74
4 W Hasaranga 83 2175 139 15.65 15.92 89.91
5 Rashid Khan 106 2470 179 13.80 16.31 87.72
6 Saeed Ajmal 63 1516 85 17.84 19.07 75.03
7 T Shamsi 70 1860 89 20.90 19.90 71.89
8 A Zampa 104 2801 131 21.38 21.18 67.55
9 MJ Santner 112 2799 124 22.57 22.47 63.67
10 AU Rashid 126 3438 141 24.38 23.21 61.66

Against Top Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS RUNS WKTS AVE R AVE RAT
TS Kuldeep Yadav 35 862 66 13.06 14.04 150.00
1 Kuldeep Yadav 35 862 66 13.06 14.04 150.00
2 W Hasaranga 64 1768 106 16.68 15.98 131.80
3 Imran Tahir 35 880 52 16.92 16.09 130.90
4 BAW Mendis 31 819 45 18.20 18.23 115.49
5 Saeed Ajmal 53 1302 73 17.84 18.39 114.48
6 Rashid Khan 39 983 54 18.20 18.84 111.79
7 MJ Santner 83 2115 96 22.03 20.91 100.69
8 T Shamsi 58 1518 66 23.00 20.93 100.59
9 A Zampa 88 2415 104 23.22 22.47 93.71
10 AU Rashid 111 3099 121 25.61 23.86 88.25

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 500

Against All Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS BLS RUNS ER R ER RAT
TS DL Vettori 34 787 748 5.70 5.60 100.00
1 Rashid Khan 106 2432 2470 6.09 6.40 87.50
2 Saeed Ajmal 63 1430 1516 6.36 6.40 87.42
3 Imran Tahir 38 845 948 6.73 6.42 87.23
4 Kuldeep Yadav 46 1011 1129 6.70 6.47 86.55
5 T Shamsi 70 1509 1860 7.40 6.49 86.21
6 BAW Mendis 39 885 952 6.45 6.70 83.52
7 W Hasaranga 83 1878 2175 6.95 6.79 82.42
8 MJ Santner 112 2376 2799 7.07 6.79 82.38
9 A Zampa 104 2291 2801 7.34 6.91 80.95
10 AU Rashid 126 2756 3438 7.48 7.01 79.86

Against Top Teams

RANK BOWLER INNS BLS RUNS ER R ER RAT
TS DL Vettori 30 696 683 5.89 5.69 200.00
1 Kuldeep Yadav 35 791 862 6.54 6.18 184.29
2 T Shamsi 58 1233 1518 7.39 6.31 180.44
3 Saeed Ajmal 53 1218 1302 6.41 6.33 179.69
4 Imran Tahir 35 773 880 6.83 6.50 175.20
5 Rashid Khan 39 912 983 6.47 6.56 173.58
6 MJ Santner 83 1736 2115 7.31 6.85 166.05
7 BAW Mendis 31 714 819 6.88 6.94 163.93
8 W Hasaranga 64 1434 1768 7.40 7.01 162.38
9 A Zampa 88 1907 2415 7.60 7.05 161.50
10 AU Rashid 111 2444 3099 7.61 7.05 161.43

BEST BOWLING BY WKTS (NWT)

BBW

In this criteria, we have taken the top 5 bowling performances by Wkts of a bowler against Non Weak Teams of all time. 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 YS Chahal 6/25 4/23 4/52 3/18 3/20 4.00 100.00
1 Kuldeep Yadav 5/17 5/24 4/30 3/12 3/13 4.00 100.00
2 BAW Mendis 6/16 4/12 3/9 3/20 3/23 3.80 95.00
2 Rashid Khan 4/12 4/17 4/18 4/23 3/13 3.80 95.00
4 Saeed Ajmal 4/23 4/26 4/30 3/17 3/18 3.60 90.00
4 Imran Tahir 5/24 4/21 3/18 3/21 3/26 3.60 90.00
4 MJ Santner 4/11 4/16 4/31 3/12 3/15 3.60 90.00
4 A Zampa 5/19 4/34 3/14 3/16 3/16 3.60 90.00
4 T Shamsi 5/24 4/25 3/6 3/17 3/19 3.60 90.00
4 W Hasaranga 4/9 4/17 4/33 3/12 3/13 3.60 90.00
10 AU Rashid 4/2 4/35 3/11 3/21 3/25 3.40 85.00

BEST BOWLING BY ECO (NWT)

BBE

In this criteria, we have taken the top 5 bowling performances by Economy of a bowler against Non Weak Teams. Best Bowling By Economy (BBE) is the Relative Economy of the bowler in the 5 Inns. Only 12+ 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 Mohammad Hafeez 4.0/6 2.0/4 4.0/9 4.0/11 4.0/13 2.41 150.00
1 AU Rashid 2.2/2 4.0/11 4.0/11 4.0/13 4.0/14 2.61 138.83
2 W Hasaranga 4.0/9 4.0/12 4.0/12 4.0/13 4.0/13 2.88 125.44
3 MJ Santner 4.0/11 4.0/11 4.0/12 4.0/14 4.0/14 2.98 121.36
4 A Zampa 4.0/11 4.0/12 3.0/10 4.0/14 2.3/9 3.02 119.90
5 T Shamsi 4.0/11 4.0/13 4.0/13 4.0/16 4.0/16 3.03 119.41
6 BAW Mendis 4.0/9 3.0/9 4.0/12 4.0/12 4.0/16 3.17 114.10
7 Rashid Khan 4.0/12 4.0/12 4.0/13 4.0/14 4.0/15 3.46 104.39
8 Kuldeep Yadav 4.0/12 4.0/13 4.0/16 4.0/17 4.0/18 3.67 98.61
9 Imran Tahir 4.0/13 4.0/14 4.0/17 4.0/18 4.0/18 3.81 94.85
10 Saeed Ajmal 4.0/12 4.0/13 4.0/17 3.0/13 3.1/14 3.82 94.60

PRIMARY RATING

The total of the above five criteria comes out to be 1,000.00 points. The Primary Rating is the addition of the points a bowler scored in the five criteria. The Weightage of the Rating is 40%.

RANK BOWLER PRO CON ECO BBW BBE RAT PRI PTS
1 Rashid Khan 200.00 199.51 261.08 95.00 104.39 859.98 343.99
2 W Hasaranga 155.31 221.71 244.80 90.00 125.44 837.25 334.90
3 Kuldeep Yadav 96.09 250.00 270.84 100.00 98.61 815.53 326.21
4 AU Rashid 157.54 149.91 241.29 85.00 138.83 772.56 309.02
5 MJ Santner 138.55 164.36 248.43 90.00 121.36 762.69 305.08
6 A Zampa 146.37 161.26 242.46 90.00 119.90 759.99 304.00
7 T Shamsi 99.44 172.48 266.65 90.00 119.41 747.99 299.20
8 Imran Tahir 70.39 229.85 262.43 90.00 94.85 747.52 299.01
9 BAW Mendis 73.74 208.23 247.45 95.00 114.10 738.51 295.40
10 Saeed Ajmal 94.97 189.51 267.12 90.00 94.60 736.19 294.48

CONDITIONS CRITERIA

The Conditions Rating is calculated by applying the five criteria of Primary Rating to various conditions. If Innings are less than the Qualification than the Player gets 50% of the Points. Click on the Rating Titles to see how they were calculated.

The four conditions criteria and thier weightage is as follows:-

CRITERIA POINTS
Home 20.00
Away 80.00
Favourable Conditions 20.00
Unfavourable Conditions 80.00

HOME/AWAY

HM/AW RATING

Points to note:-

  • U.A.E. and India are considered as Home for Afghanistan.
  • U.A.E. is also considered as a second home for Pakistan.
  • All Home and Away stats of Pakistani and Afghani bowlers are calculated accordingly.

At Home

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 10

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 Rashid Khan 57 103 12.59 5.91 860.36 17.21
2 Imran Tahir 14 27 12.48 6.61 737.05 14.74
3 W Hasaranga 27 46 15.41 7.04 717.22 14.34
4 Saeed Ajmal 18 26 14.96 5.57 708.76 14.18
5 MJ Santner 53 59 23.29 7.58 708.38 14.17
6 BAW Mendis 13 26 12.73 6.49 706.12 14.12
7 A Zampa 33 46 18.98 7.10 700.99 14.02
8 Kuldeep Yadav 15 21 18.95 7.51 646.72 12.93
9 AU Rashid 40 47 24.40 7.97 638.32 12.77
10 T Shamsi 29 25 35.28 8.24 572.21 11.44

Away From Home

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 15

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 Kuldeep Yadav 31 65 11.25 6.33 853.81 68.30
2 T Shamsi 41 64 15.28 6.77 832.15 66.57
3 W Hasaranga 56 93 15.76 6.90 832.07 66.57
4 AU Rashid 86 94 24.37 7.27 781.19 62.50
5 Rashid Khan 49 76 15.43 6.31 759.58 60.77
6 MJ Santner 59 65 21.92 6.63 745.32 59.63
7 A Zampa 71 85 22.68 7.45 743.44 59.48
8 Saeed Ajmal 45 59 19.10 6.69 711.31 56.90
9 Imran Tahir 24 36 16.97 6.80 678.53 54.28
10 BAW Mendis 26 40 15.53 6.44 655.54 52.44

FAVOURABLE/UNFAVOURABLE CONDITIONS

FC/UC RATING

Points to note:-

  • Unfavourable Conditions (UC) is Outside Asia for Spinners and In Asia for Pacers.
  • Favourable Conditions (FC) are the opposite.

Favourable Conditions Rating

Non Asians In Asia

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 10

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 A Zampa 30 36 19.36 6.45 866.19 17.32
2 MJ Santner 29 29 23.03 6.35 842.36 16.85
3 AU Rashid 37 37 26.78 7.49 828.57 16.57
4 Imran Tahir 19 29 15.97 6.34 785.50 15.71
5 T Shamsi 19 23 19.39 6.90 760.63 15.21

Asians In Asia

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 15

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 Rashid Khan 76 132 13.11 5.90 890.09 17.80
2 W Hasaranga 56 95 15.35 6.86 844.52 16.89
3 Kuldeep Yadav 25 42 14.81 7.05 775.93 15.52
4 Saeed Ajmal 35 47 17.72 6.12 771.93 15.44
5 BAW Mendis 20 34 15.82 7.03 670.59 13.41

Unfavourable Conditions Rating

Non Asians Outside Asia

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 15

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 AU Rashid 89 104 23.53 7.48 785.14 62.81
2 T Shamsi 51 66 21.42 7.57 773.70 61.90
3 MJ Santner 83 95 22.43 7.33 764.90 61.19
4 A Zampa 74 95 22.15 7.68 760.95 60.88
5 Imran Tahir 19 34 14.26 7.15 760.21 60.82

Asians Outside Asia

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 10

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 Kuldeep Yadav 21 44 11.52 6.31 879.46 70.36
2 W Hasaranga 27 44 16.30 7.15 803.81 64.30
3 Rashid Khan 30 47 15.74 6.61 790.24 63.22
4 BAW Mendis 19 32 12.94 5.83 764.99 61.20
5 Saeed Ajmal 28 38 17.97 6.69 711.74 56.94

CONDITIONS RATING

The Conditions Rating is the addition of the points a bowler scored in the four criteria. The Weightage of the Rating is 20%.

RANK BOWLER AW HM UC FC CON PTS
1 Kuldeep Yadav 68.30 12.93 70.36 15.52 167.11
2 W Hasaranga 66.57 14.34 64.30 16.89 162.10
3 Rashid Khan 60.77 17.21 63.22 17.80 158.99
4 T Shamsi 66.57 11.44 61.90 15.21 155.12
5 AU Rashid 62.50 12.77 62.81 16.57 154.64
6 MJ Santner 59.63 14.17 61.19 16.85 151.83
7 A Zampa 59.48 14.02 60.88 17.32 151.69
8 Imran Tahir 54.28 14.74 60.82 15.71 145.55
9 Saeed Ajmal 56.90 14.18 56.94 15.44 143.46
10 BAW Mendis 52.44 14.12 61.20 13.41 141.18

SECONDARY CRITERIA

The Secondary Rating consists of three parts. If Innings are less than the Qualification than the Player gets 50% of the Points. Click on the Rating Titles to see how they were calculated.

The three secondary criteria and thier weightage is as follows:-

CRITERIA POINTS
World Cup 150.00
Impact Innings 150.00
Top Form 100.00
WORLD CUP RATING

Points to note:-

  • Qualifying round is the round in some editions of World Cup in which the main teams don't play.
  • Matches in qualifying round are not considered in our rating.

WORLD CUP

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 5

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 BAW Mendis 21 35 15.03 6.70 832.83 124.92
2 A Zampa 21 36 13.69 6.32 821.01 123.15
3 Saeed Ajmal 23 36 16.86 6.79 797.73 119.66
4 Rashid Khan 20 31 15.77 6.49 777.23 116.58
5 W Hasaranga 13 24 13.58 6.61 741.07 111.16
6 AU Rashid 30 31 23.68 6.90 728.77 109.32
7 T Shamsi 12 23 13.26 6.96 721.08 108.16
8 MJ Santner 21 25 18.72 6.34 712.79 106.92
9 Imran Tahir 9 18 11.89 5.94 710.89 106.63
10 Kuldeep Yadav 5 10 13.90 6.95 500.00 75.00
IMPACT INNINGS (II)

Impact Innings are those innings which have an impact either in terms of wickets or economy rate. Know All About II. These are the criteria for an inning to be included in II:-

  • A Bowler takes equal to or more wickets than 4.
  • A Bowler bowls more than 12 balls and has a low ER.
  • The required ER increases as wickets increase.

IMPACT INNINGS

Min Innings Vs Top Teams: 25

RANK BOWLER INNS II II Perc RAT WTG
1 Rashid Khan 106 80 75.47 896.05 134.41
2 A Zampa 104 63 60.58 777.11 116.57
3 AU Rashid 126 75 59.52 774.86 116.23
4 Imran Tahir 38 27 71.05 758.83 113.83
5 Kuldeep Yadav 46 33 71.74 731.39 109.71
6 Saeed Ajmal 63 42 66.67 728.89 109.33
7 W Hasaranga 83 52 62.65 718.03 107.70
8 MJ Santner 112 59 52.68 668.40 100.26
9 BAW Mendis 39 25 64.10 608.55 91.28
10 T Shamsi 70 37 52.86 603.72 90.56
TOP FORM RATING

Points to note:-

  • Top Form is calculated by taking the best 30 consecutive innings of a bowler.
  • Only Inns against Non Weak Teams are considered in the rating.
  • Non Weak Teams may be found in the last section.

TOP FORM

Min Innings Vs Non Weak Teams: 15

RANK BOWLER INNS WKTS AVE ECO RAT WTG
1 W Hasaranga 30 52 14.35 6.72 917.04 91.70
2 Kuldeep Yadav 30 53 13.77 6.53 911.48 91.15
3 Imran Tahir 30 50 14.38 6.43 910.58 91.06
4 T Shamsi 30 42 17.26 6.73 877.84 87.78
5 BAW Mendis 30 45 16.71 6.54 848.98 84.90
6 Saeed Ajmal 30 46 15.67 6.32 839.31 83.93
7 AU Rashid 30 41 18.88 7.14 813.77 81.38
8 Rashid Khan 30 43 16.98 6.24 803.02 80.30
9 MJ Santner 30 37 18.78 6.44 796.92 79.69
10 A Zampa 30 37 18.92 6.58 768.40 76.84

SECONDARY RATING

The Secondary Rating is the addition of the points a bowler scored in the three criteria. The Weightage of the Rating is 40%.

RANK BOWLER WC II TF SEC RAT
1 Rashid Khan 116.58 134.41 80.30 331.29
2 A Zampa 123.15 116.57 76.84 316.56
3 Saeed Ajmal 119.66 109.33 83.93 312.92
4 Imran Tahir 106.63 113.83 91.06 311.52
5 W Hasaranga 111.16 107.70 91.70 310.57
6 AU Rashid 109.32 116.23 81.38 306.92
7 BAW Mendis 124.92 91.28 84.90 301.10
8 MJ Santner 106.92 100.26 79.69 286.87
9 T Shamsi 108.16 90.56 87.78 286.50
10 Kuldeep Yadav 75.00 109.71 91.15 275.86

OVERALL RATING

OVERALL Rating is the addition of the points of all the above criteria. The rating is out of 1,000 Pts.

RANK BOWLER NAT PRI PTS CON PTS SEC PTS FIN RAT
1 Rashid Khan AFG 343.99 158.99 331.29 834.28
2 W Hasaranga SL 334.90 162.10 310.57 807.57
3 A Zampa AUS 304.00 151.69 316.56 772.25
4 AU Rashid ENG 309.02 154.64 306.92 770.59
5 Kuldeep Yadav IND 326.21 167.11 275.86 769.18
6 Imran Tahir SA 299.01 145.55 311.52 756.07
7 Saeed Ajmal PAK 294.48 143.46 312.92 750.86
8 MJ Santner NZ 305.08 151.83 286.87 743.78
9 T Shamsi SA 299.20 155.12 286.50 740.82
10 BAW Mendis SL 295.40 141.18 301.10 737.69

NON WEAK TEAMS

DECADE OF MAT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
2000s PAK SA SL IND WI AUS NZ ENG BAN
2010s IND SA PAK AUS ENG NZ SL WI BAN AFG
2020s IND AUS ENG NZ PAK SA BAN WI SL US AFG

TOP TEAMS

DECADE OF MAT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
2000s PAK SA SL IND WI AUS NZ ENG
2010s IND SA PAK AUS ENG NZ SL WI
2020s IND AUS ENG NZ PAK SA BAN WI

* Our ratings are dynamic, and as new matches are played, the rating of earlier bowlers may change if current bowlers set new benchmarks.

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