A look at 5 best bowling spells By Irfan Pathan

Irfan Pathan made his international debut in the year 2003 and his international career spanned over 12 years. Even though he wasn’t a part of the Indian setup since 2012, he never actually retired from the game. He was always hopeful for a comeback and as a result, he kept trying for an international comeback with his performances in domestic cricket. Unfortunately, he never actually made it back to international cricket and finally said goodbye to all forms of cricket on 4th January 2020.

His career saw both highs and lows, from exhibiting match-winning performances to being dropped from the team. He was a bowler with a wonderful ability to swing the ball both the ways, irrespective of the fact that he wasn’t as quick as others were. Not just the bowling, his ability to contribute with the bat has always been highly admired.

The younger of the Pathan brothers, Irfan said that his biggest regret was the fact that players begin their career at age of 26 years but his international career came to a halt at the age of 27-28. During his wonderful career, the bowler bowled some beautiful spells and some of those spells are mentioned in the list of top 5 bowling spells by Irfan Pathan.

5. 5 for 27 Against Zimbabwe ODI

In 2005 Irfan Pathan showcased another outstanding performance against Zimbabwe in the Videocon Triangular Series in Zimbabwe. Pathan took 10 wickets at an average of 16.10 at an economy rate of 5.03 in four matches. His best performance in the series was a five-wicket haul of 5 for 27, which turned out to be his best ever ODI and this performance of his is at number 5 in the list of top 5 bowling spells by Irfan Pathan. His performance helped India inflict all out on host Zimbabwe for a low total of 65 runs.

4. 5 for 61 Against Sri Lanka ODI

Irfan’s last international match was against Sri Lanka in 2012 when India toured Sri Lanka for limited over series. India had already sealed the 5 match ODI series 3-1 and team India was on a mission to extend its dominance in the final ODI. In the final ODI, Pathan showcased an all-round performance as he scored a quick 29 while batting and took 5 wickets for 61 runs in his 10 overs. He dismissed both the Lankan openers early in the innings but somehow Sri Lanka managed to reach 204 for 5, once again Pathan came to the rescue as he managed to pick another 3 wickets and earned himself the Man of the Match award. His MOM performance is at number 4 on the list of top 5 bowling spells by Irfan Pathan. India won the series 4-1.

3. 7 for 59 Against Zimbabwe Test Match

In 2005, Irfan Pathan helped India clean sweep Zimbabwe 2-0 in a test series played in Zimbabwe. In the first test, Irfan won the man of the match performance to help India to an innings victory, he bowled magnificently as he took 5/58 and 4/53 in both the innings. He followed this performance with his career-best performance of a 7/59 against Zimbabwe, he single-handedly tore apart the batting lineup of the host and again in the second innings Irfan took 5/67, it was his second ten-wicket match haul.

2. 3 for 16 Pakistan ICC T20 Cricket World Cup 2007

In 2007 a young Indian side led by MS Dhoni took part in the inaugural T20 world cup. The young Indian squad surprisingly went on to win the tournament. It was due to some good performances of Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, and Irfan throughout the tournament that helped us lift the trophy. Irfan’s heroic performance in the T20 World Cup final is second in the list of top 5 bowling spells by Irfan Pathan.

Ifran was in the squad for his all-round ability. He was a part of the playing XI in all the matches and he managed to pick up 7 wickets in 6 games before the final. The final was played against arch-rivals Pakistan, and this is were Irfan came up with a wonderful performance as he took 3 for 16 in his overs. He took apart Pakistan’s middle-order, as he dismissed Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, and Yasir Arafat. His 3/16 in the final earned him the Man of the Match in the final.

1. 5 for 61 Against Pakistan Test Match

On 29 January 2006, a young Indian bowler caused havoc to an experienced Pakistan batting lineup. Irfan became the only bowler to claim a hat-trick in the first over of a Test match. His first hattrick included wickets of  Salman Butt, Younis Khan, and Mohammad Yousuf. His outswinger resulted in Butt being caught by Dravid in the slips, before trapped Younis Khan leg before wicket with an inswinger and another inswinger meant Yousuf was clean bowled. This spell of his was probably the best spell of his career and as a result, is top in the list of top 5 bowling spells by Irfan Pathan.