'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
When only Test matches were played, economy rates of bowlers didn’t really count. However, with the advent of limited-overs cricket, economy rates of bowlers started to become significant.
Containing the run-flow started to become as important as picking up wickets. Hence, the bowling attack of various teams began to comprise of bowlers who attacked from the outset and bowlers who could keep the run-rate down.
In this article, we look at 10 bowlers who had the best economy rate in ODI history.
Criteria - Minimum 100 ODIs
#10 Glenn McGrath – 3.88
Glenn McGrath is probably the best fast bowler Australia has ever produced. He is the 4th highest wicket-taker of all time in Test cricket and sits at the top of the list if only fast bowlers are considered.
His One-Day record is brilliant as well. In 250 ODIs, he took 381 wickets at a superb average of 22.02. His career economy rate of 3.88 is one of the best. His strength was the impeccable line and length he bowled. He seldom offered any loose deliveries was generally regarded as one of the most economical bowlers of the game.
His career-best figures of 7/15 is the third-best bowling performance in ODI history. He is also 5th on the list of highest 5-wicket hauls in ODIs. He was the leader of the mighty Australian attack for nearly 14 years.
#9 Courtney Walsh – 3.83
Courtney Walsh was an integral part of the fearsome and great West Indian pace quartet, which took West Indies to great heights in world cricket. Walsh made his ODI debut in 1985 (a year after he made his Test debut).
However, his first year in ODI cricket wasn’t great as he finished with 7 wickets in 10 games. However, the year 1986 saw things turn drastically for him. He took 20 wickets in 11 ODIs at an average of 16.40. This included a mind-boggling spell of 4.4-3-1-5 against Sri Lanka, which was his only 5-wicket haul in the 50-over format.
He took 227 wickets in 205 ODIs in his career which spanned 15 years. His economy of 3.83 was excellent as well.
#8 Gavin Larsen – 3.77
Gavin Larsen was a proper limited-overs specialist for New Zealand. The fact that he played just a handful of Tests (8 to be precise) is a testament to that limited-overs specialist tag. His strength was his immaculate line and length which never allowed the batsmen to get away.
He was a part of the famous quartet which was known as Dibbly-dobbly-wibbly-wobbly. Larsen played 19 World Cup games and took 18 wickets. He will always cherish his 100th ODI wicket as he prized out Sachin Tendulkar in Mumbai.
He played 121 ODIs and picked up 113 wickets at an economy of 3.77.
#7 Kapil Dev – 3.72
Kapil Dev is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders the game has ever seen. Also, he was one of the best captains India has ever produced. We all remember Kapil Dev for different reasons. One of the most common reasons we remember him is for the 1983 World Cup triumph.
However, not many fans would know that Kapil Dev’s economy rate in ODIs is one of the best in the history of the game. In the 225 ODIs that he played, he took 253 wickets. His career economy rate was 3.72, which is by far the best for an Indian in ODI cricket. He also bowled one of the most economical spells in the history of the game, where he gave away only 4 runs in the 7 overs he bowled.
#6 Shaun Pollock – 3.67
Shaun Pollock followed the footsteps of his father Peter Pollock and Uncle Graeme Pollock and went on to become a South African legend. He was one of the best fast-bowling all-rounders to have played for South Africa.
Shaun Pollock was very consistent across formats throughout his career. He started his ODI career with a bang, as he took 4/34 on debut against England at Newlands. Pollock had the unique ability to move the ball both ways at a decent pace. Hence, he was one of the best new-ball bowlers during his time.
Pollock took a staggering 393 wickets in his 303-match ODI career. His economy of 3.67 was excellent as well.
#5 Ewen Chatfield – 3.58
Ewen Chatfield was one of the most accurate bowlers of his time. He forged a wonderful new-ball partnership with Sir Richard Hadlee and mainly remained in the latter’s shadows.
Chatfield's accuracy was such that Pakistan great Javed Miandad once said, “Chatfield came as close to a bowling machine as any human I know. He would pick a spot and keep pitching on it, delivery after delivery”.
Hence, batsmen very rarely got bad deliveries from this hard-working Wellington pacer.
Chatfield played 114 ODIs and picked 140 wickets at an excellent economy of 3.58.
#4 Malcolm Marshall – 3.53
Malcolm Marshall was one of the fastest bowlers in the 1980s. His ability to surprise the batsmen with magical and devastating deliveries was brilliant. India's great all-rounder Kapil Dev once summed up Marshall’s bowling style and said, “He was a slippery customer in the truest sense. You never knew whether the ball would rise to your throat or hit your ankles.”
His ODI career though, never took off, like his Test career. However, even though he didn’t get a lot of wickets, his economy is one of the best in ODI cricket. He played 126 ODIs where he took 157 wickets at a superb economy of 3.53.
#3 Curtly Ambrose – 3.48
At a height of 6 feet and 7 inches, Curtly Ambrose is regarded as one of the best fast bowlers to have played the game. Ambrose had the excellent ability to generate discomforting bounce.
He will be remembered as a wonderful Test bowler and his exploits of 7/1 will never be forgotten. But, little do people know that the tall fast-bowler from Antigua has the third-best economy of bowlers who’ve played more than 100 ODIs.
In 176 One-Day games, he has taken 225 wickets at an average of 24.12. His economy of 3.48 is one of the best in ODI history.
Late in his career, he also bowled one of the most economical spells in the history of ODI cricket. In 1999, playing against Sri Lanka in Sharjah, Ambrose produced a jaw-dropping spell of 10-5-5-1.
#2 Michael Holding – 3.33
Nicknamed ‘Whispering Death’, Michael Holding was one of the most ruthless bowlers. Tall and well-built, Holding had a silent and a nonchalant approach to the crease (in his run-up) and the pace he generated was remarkable. Along with Joel Garner, Andy Roberts, and Malcolm Marshall, he formed a formidable pace attack.
Holding used his height to great effect as he always generated extra bounce from the pitch. His career economy of 3.33 in ODIs is second best by any player who has played over a 100 ODIs. He took 142 wickets in 102 ODIs.
#1 Sir Richard Hadlee – 3.30
Sir Richard Hadlee was a part of the four great all-rounders of the 1980s (which included Ian Botham, Kapil Dev and Imran Khan). The way he carried the New Zealand bowling attack was brilliant. He bowled his heart out every time he took the field.
He was the first bowler to take 400 Test wickets. He finished his Test career with 431 wickets. His ODI record was very good as well. In 115 ODIs he played, he took 158 wickets at an average of 21.56 and a superb economy of 3.30. This economy puts him at #1 on the list of the best economy rate by bowlers who’ve played a minimum of 100 One-Day Internationals.
