Top 6 bowlers with the longest run-up

The record for the longest bowling run-up is not held by any professional cricketer but an amateur 43-year-old financial consultant who also happens to be the father of two children. Ian Biddle registered a record by running 2.6 miles to his bowling crease during a celebrity cricket match in 2015.

A fast bowler in full flight, steaming in to his bowling crease is quite the sight to behold. But sadly, too much cricket nowadays compels fast bowlers to cut down on their run-ups and not go full throttle into the bowling crease.

Yet, it would be interesting to look back to those days when a fast bowler's action started with that long dreaded run that put fear into the hearts of the batsmen. Here are 6 bowlers with unusually long run-ups.

1) Michael Holding

Holding had an incredibly long run-up

One of the greatest fast bowlers to have ever played the game, Michael Holding was famous for his very long run-up. Against England at the Adelaide Oval in 1979-80, his run-up was so long that he seemed to be starting out from the sightscreen.

Known as the 'Whispering Death', he used to cover the ground to his bowling crease in no time as he skimmed across with perfectly paced gigantic strides. He also used his height to his advantage to extract good bounce off the pitch.

He belonged to the fearsome West Indian fast bowling line up comprising the likes of Joel Garner, Andy Roberts and Malcolm Marshall who also had long bowling run-ups. Holding is fondly remembered as a legend of the game. He belonged to an age when the West Indian pace battery terrorised the opposition batsmen.

2) Dennis Lillee

Dennis Lillee in action against England

When one turns back the clock and ruminates of fast bowlers of the yesteryears, the name of Dennis Lillee immediately comes to the mind. Remembered as the outstanding fast bowler of his generation, Lillee was out and out fast with a very long run-up

Making his Test debut during the 1971 Test series against England, Lillee was an instant success as he came away with bowling figures of 5 for 84. By the 1972 Ashes series, he was the bowler to fear as he finished with 31 wickets at an average of 17.67 in the series.

Lillee was at his devastating best in the 1974-75 Ashes series as he formed a formidable bowling partnership with Thomson that made the caption run by The Sunday Telegraph at that time a popular slogan transmitted orally: "Ashes to Ashes, dust to dust, if Thomson don't get ya, Lillee must."

3) Sir Wesley Winfield Hall

Wes Hall during a practice match

Sir Wesley Winfield Hall or Wes Hall as he is popularly remembered was a tall, lanky fast bowler from Barbados who had the reputation of having one of the longest bowling run-ups. The most interesting anecdote about him is that he was a batsman and a wicket-keeper during his school days and took to fast bowling only much later.

He was the chief tormentor of India's batting line-up during his debut series in India in 1959. He dismissed Nari Contractor for a duck and quickly followed it up with the wickets of Pankaj Roy and Vijay Manjrekar on his debut. In the second match at Kanpur, he ended up taking 11 wickets.

He followed it up with a Test hat-trick in Pakistan in 1959. For the next few years, Hall was a force to reckon with in the famous West Indian bowling line-up. His long run-up was so famous that on being appointed senator after his retirement, he quipped, "You think my run up was long. Now you should hear my speeches."

4) Bob Willis

Bob Willis was regarded as one of the finest bowlers

Having spearheaded the English bowling attack throughout the 1970s, Bob Willis is still remembered by cricket fans today as one of the finest fast bowlers with a very long run-up. He was a prolific wicket-taker and is currently the fourth on the list after James Anderson, Ian Botham and Stuart Broad with 325 scalps to his credit.

His first-class record is even more prolific as he has 899 wickets against his name. Willis also captained the England team in 18 Tests and 28 ODIs. He took 32 wickets during England's 1976-77 tour to India with 20 of them coming in the Test series.

He followed it up with 7 for 78 against Australia in the first Test of the 1977 Ashes. The Englishman finished with 27 wickets in the series and was adjudged the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1978. He had an illustrious career which was often interrupted with serious injuries.

5) David Lawrence

David Lawrence’s career was cut short by injury

One of the not so well remembered fast bowlers, David Lawrence was a repository of talent whose promising career was cut short by injury. An English bowler of Jamaican origin, Lawrence was tall, sturdy and powerfully built.

He attracted a lot of attention at the tender age of 17 when he opened the bowling for Gloucestershire along with Courtney Walsh. It was not until 1991 however that he broke into the Test team against the West Indies in the fifth Test at the Oval.

Though erratic and wayward at times, Lawrence with a very long run-up and brisk pace troubled the batsmen picking up five wickets. He soon established himself as the main English strike bowler until a horrific knee injury brought an end to his career.

6) Shoaib Akhtar

The Rawalpindi Express was one of the toughest bowlers to face

Known for his express pace, the former Pakistani fast bowler also known as 'Rawalpindi Express' was one of the fastest bowlers in the modern times. Akhtar when in his elements had a very long run-up which was unnerving because of the pace he could generate.

He is believed to have bowled the fastest delivery of all time when he clocked a speed of 161.3 km/h during the 2003 World Cup. But he became consistent only during the Test series at home against England in 2005 when he troubled all the batsmen and came away with seventeen wickets.

At his best, Akhtar was truly unplayable and his bouncers grievously injured quite a few batsmen. An Akhtar in full flow, steaming in on with a long run-up was truly a sight to behold. Unfortunately, a series of disciplinary issues and niggling injuries cut short his career in the end.