Ranking the 3 best death bowlers at the 2023 World Cup

The 2023 World Cup saw plenty of excitement, but quality death bowling was one thing that eluded the tournament. With very few last-ball thrillers in the mix, the competition saw several games finish well before the final phase of the innings.

That is reflected in the fact that most of the World Cup's leading performers in overs 41-50 were spinners, implying that the match situations were often not the usual ones that are expected at the death. Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner, Kuldeep Yadav and Rashid Khan are some of the bowlers who excelled in this phase.

So what about the pacers, who presumably came into the tournament preparing to counter more death-bowling scenarios? There weren't many who got enough of a chance to perform, with Mohammed Shami, for example, finishing games off before the final 10 overs.

Nevertheless, there were a few who stood out. Rather surprisingly, all three of them are from subcontinental teams.

Here, we attempt to rank the three best death bowlers at the 2023 World Cup on the basis of their basic numbers in that phase of the innings (min 30 balls).

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#3 Mohammad Wasim Jr.

Pakistan's bowling attack became more threatening after Mohammad Wasim Jr was picked

Pakistan's bowling attack became much more threatening after they included Mohammad Wasim Jr. at Hasan Ali's expense. Part of that was due to the way the former operated in the second half of the opposition batting innings.

Wasim Jr. generated considerable reverse with the older ball, getting it to tail back in while hitting his yorkers regularly. He also wasn't afraid to resort to slower balls and bouncers as he changed things to keep the opposition batters guessing.

Despite bowling at the death in just four matches, Wasim Jr. picked up eight wickets, the third-best tally among all bowlers in the 2023 World Cup. His economy rate in the phase was 6.54, and 28 out of the 55 balls he bowled were dots. He was also hit for just three sixes and four fours.

With the ability to hit big blows and bowl at all stages of the innings, Wasim Jr. needs to be a fixture in Pakistan's white-ball setup.

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#2 Haris Rauf

Haris Rauf's death bowling was the only good part of his campaign

A surprise entry on this list, Haris Rauf had a miserable 2023 World Cup campaign. He conceded the most runs by a bowler in a single edition of the ICC event after being taken for 533 runs in nine matches at an economy rate of 6.74.

However, Rauf was an underrated performer at the death. Like Wasim Jr., he got the ball to reverse considerably and bowled fuller lengths. The fast bowler ended the competition with the most wickets in that phase of the innings, with 10 to his name at an economy rate of 5.8.

Almost half the balls Rauf bowled at the death were dots - 44 out of 90. He also conceded just seven fours and a six. Unfortunately, though, he was taken to the cleaners at just about all other times.

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#1 Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah was his usual self at the 2023 World Cup

Was there ever any doubt? Jasprit Bumrah, widely regarded as the best death bowler in the world, tops this list after a series of displays at the 2023 World Cup that reaffirmed his status.

Bumrah bowled 126 balls at the death, and 66 of those were dots. He picked up nine wickets at an economy rate of 5.00 and was hit for just seven fours and two sixes.

Unlike the other two on this list, Bumrah was his excellent self at all phases of the innings. Barring a poor display against New Zealand, the Indian spearhead was at his absolute best even as batters tried to play him out. He finished with 20 wickets, the fourth-highest, at an economy rate of 4.06.