Legendary fast bowlers produced by Windies

#4 Michael Holding

Michael Holding

One of the fastest bowlers to have ever played Test Cricket, Michael Holding was nicknamed "Whispering Death" by the umpires, the first part of the moniker came from his silent run-up and the second came from the fallout of his run-up. Gifted with a rare blend of colossal skill, vigour, strength and savagery with the ball, Michael Holding was regarded as the most handsome man in cricket for a number of years.

Holding used his training as a sprinter to perfect his run-up and his height to generate large amounts of bounce and zip off the pitch. His over to Geoff Boycott in 1981 in Bridgetown is considered to be 'the greatest over in Test history'. The first five balls landed on the spot, each faster than the previous one and Boycott, aged 40 at the time, was visibly exasperated but the crowd was overjoyed when Boycott was clean bowled off the last ball.

In just 60 Tests, he picked up 249 wickets at an average of 23 and a strike rate of 50. He holds the record for the best bowling figures in a match by a West Indian, 14 for 149, including a career-best 8 for 92 against England in 1976 at the Kennington Oval in London. He also picked up 142 wickets in 102 ODIs and was a part of the World Cup winning side in 1979. He was the last man dismissed in India's surprise World Cup Final victory over the mighty Windies.