5 cricketing nations with the best pace bowling attacks in Test history

#3 Pakistan

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Pakistan have a rich legacy of fast bowling tradition. Pakistan has been the only side from the subcontinent known for producing fast bowling greats besides having spin as their usual strength.

Fazal Mahmood should be credited for pioneering the pace bowling revolution in Pakistan. In the 50’s, Mahmood formed a brilliant partnership with fellow seamer Khan Mohammad.

In the late 70’s, Sarfaraz Nawaz pioneered the art of reverse swing which became synonymous with Pakistan’s bowling in Test cricket. In the 80s, Pakistan’s legendary all-rounder Imran Khan formed a potent bowling combination with Nawaz. Imran known for his killer looks was equally menacing with his swing bowling.

In the late 80’s Wasim Akram became the new pace sensation for Pakistan. Post Nawaz’s retirement, Khan formed a successful fast bowling pair with pace ace Wasim Akram.

Wasim Akram hailed as the “Sultan of Swing” was the most complete swing bowler the world has ever seen. He had a wide repertoire in his arsenal and mastered the craft of reverse swinging the old ball. On the other hand, Waqar Younis was the most lethal swing bowler of his time. Younis bowled his big inswinging deliveries with a side on slinging action. He mastered the art of late swing and his toe crushing yorkers made him a potent strike weapon. The “Two W’s” became the most dreaded fast bowling pair in the 90’s.

Aaqib Javed, a decent swing bower provided good support to his more illustrious counterparts. Pakistan continued to churn out quality seamers like Ata-Ur-Rehman, Mohammad Akram, Mohammad Zahid and Shahid Nazir who provided Pakistan with depth in their pace attack.

Speed demon Shoiab Akthar was a sensation when he burst onto the international scene. The strongly built pacer bowled from a long run-up and hurled the ball at lightning speed to get through the defences of batsmen. The “Rawalpindi Express” could rattle through the best of batting order. Unfortunately the temperamental cricketer battled with disciplinary issues and injury concerns all through his career.

With the turn of the century, Mohammad Sami forged a decent new ball partnership with Akhtar. Sami, a slippery customer was deceptively quick with his deliveries hurrying on to the batsmen. Umar Gul known for his bowling at the death, courtesy his deadly yorkers developed into a potent T-20 bowler. Talented fast bowler Shabbir Ahmed promised a lot but faded away rather quickly. Meanwhile all-rounders Abdur Razzak and Azhar Mahmood provided good support to the frontline seamers.

Mohammad Asif, a great swing bowling prospect started off brilliantly but his involvement in match fixing ended his promising career. Mohammad Aamir hailed as the next great fast bowler made rapid strides but his involvement in match fixing got him a five year ban. He has come back strongly and looks to be a quality bowler in the making.

In recent times, Junaid Khan has been their best seam bowler in Test cricket. The giant like Mohammad Irfan has been deadly on the bouncy tracks whereas seamer Wahab Riaz can clock up some decent pace. The Pakistanis also have promising crop of young seamers in Rahat Ali, Sohail Khan and Mohammad Talha.

Notable Mentions: Ata-Ur-Rehman, Mohammad Akram, Shahid Nazir, Sikander Bakht, Mudassar Nazar, Sohail Tanvir, Rana Naveed Ul Hassan, Rao Iftikhar Anjum.

Pakistan Fast Bowlers with 100 or more Test Wickets

Bowler

Matches

Wickets

Wasim Akram

104

414

Waqar Younis

87

373

Imran Khan

88

362

Shoiab Akhtar

46

178

Sarfaraz Nawaz

51

177

Umar Gul

47

163

Fazal Mahmood

34

139

Mohammad Asif

23

106

Abdur Razzak

46

100