The emergence of limited-overs cricket has lopsided the game in favour of batters, with nothing much for bowlers in it. However, Test cricket is a great leveller in many aspects, staging a fierce battle between bat and ball.
Bowlers have a steep task of routing the opposition’s 20 wickets across both innings without giving a lot of freedom to batters.
Over the years, we have witnessed some notable bowlers tilting the matches single-handedly with their marvellous performances.
Here, we’ll glance at the 5 best bowling performances in an innings in Test cricket.
Stuart Broad (England): 8/15 vs Australia | Trent Bridge, 2015
In the fourth Ashes Test of the 2015 series, Stuart Broad bowled unarguably one of the best new ball spells against Australia.
After winning the toss, England captain Alastair Cook decided to bowl first. Bowling in familiar conditions at home, Broad proved his captain’s decision correct by troubling Australian batters in the first session of the Test.
The right-arm seamer opened the bowling and also opened the wickets account for England. On the third delivery of the innings, Broad removed Chris Rogers to complete his 300th Test wicket.
Three balls later, he had Steven Smith edge the ball into the third slip fielder’s hand, ending the first over on 10 for 2. He came back steaming in the third over to get the better of Shaun Marsh.
In the fifth over, Broad got rid of Adam Voges, and by the seventh over, he had his five-for, dismissing Aussie captain Michael Clarke. It seemed like Broad’s mayhem was over, but then he struck 2 wickets in the 13th over, making 2 Mitchells — Starc and Johnson — walk back to the pavilion.
In the 19th over, Broad picked up his 8th scalp of the innings, wrapping up Australia for 60 runs before lunch on day 1! He conceded only 15 runs from his 9.3 overs, of which 5 were maidens.
Anil Kumble (India): 10/74 vs Pakistan | Delhi, 1999
Spinners from both sides made batters’ lives difficult in the second Test between India and Pakistan in 1999. Pakistan were leading the 2-match series by 1-0 and India needed a win to draw it.
After a commendable batting performance in the third innings, India set a target of 420 runs for Pakistan to chase in the last innings. It was a tough target, but Pakistan had time on their hands.
At one point, Pakistan were at ease on 101 without any loss, and Kumble had bowled only a few overs. But then the legendary Indian spinner opened the floodgates and racked up 6 wickets before the stroke of tea.
Kumble had to wait a bit to bag his 7th wicket, and then he didn’t take too long to wrap things up. Pakistan were bowled out for 207 runs, and Kumble ended up with the figures of 10 for 74, making him only the second bowler to take all 10 wickets in an innings.
Muthiah Muralidaran (Sri Lanka): 8/70 vs England | Trent Bridge, 2006
England’s Trent Bridge witnessed a brilliant spell by a visiting bowler, the Sri Lankan great Muthiah Muralidaran. Sri Lanka had set a target of 325 runs in the fourth innings.
The target wasn’t too difficult for England, given they had 5 and a half sessions and a good batting lineup to chase it. And it seemed to be going all well for the hosts till 84 runs, but then Muralidaran drew his first blood.
England then quickly slumped to 132 for 7, with Muralidaran running through their batting lineup. The off-spinner claimed his 8th wicket by trapping Jon Lewis LBW to reduce England to 153 for 9.
Muralidaran’s top-notch spell helped Sri Lanka win the third match and draw the 3-match Test series.
Also Read | The Ten Greatest Spin Bowlers of All Time in Cricket
Jim Laker (England): 10/53 vs Australia | Manchester, 1956
Even before Anil Kumble’s exploits against Pakistan in 1999, Jim Laker was the first bowler to bag 10 wickets in a Test innings.
In a land where spinners don’t get much purchase, Laker did the unthinkable in both innings of the match. England batted first and put up 459 runs on the board, which proved to be enough to defend, thanks to Laker’s spin magic.
Australia’s first innings came to an end in just 84 runs, with Laker claiming 9 wickets for 37. Had it not been for Tony Lock’s early wicket, Laker would have gobbled all 10 in the first innings itself.
Nevertheless, he fulfilled the ambition in the next innings as England asked Australia to follow on. The pitch wasn’t that bad to bat on, but except for Colin McDonald, Jim Burke, Ian Craig, and Richie Benaud, other batters couldn’t stand for too long on the crease.
Except for a couple of partnerships, Australia couldn’t give much fight to Laker’s attack as he ran through them. Laker wrapped up all 10 wickets for 53 runs to end up with match figures of 19 for 90.
Richard Hadlee (New Zealand): 9/52 vs Australia | Brisbane, 1985
New Zealand has not seen much success at their trans-Tasman rival’s home, Australia. But Sir Richard Hadlee brought the Australian batting to their knees when least expected in 1985.
The Kiwis won the toss and asked the Kangaroos to bat first. Hadlee spearheaded New Zealand’s bowling attack by taking the first wicket on the score of 1.
He racked up wickets in bunches to push back the Aussies on their home ground. Hadlee scalped 8 wickets in a row and bagged his 9th by routing Australia for 179 runs.
His valiant effort of 9 for 52 materialised in New Zealand winning the first Test match and eventually the series by 2-0.
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