COC presents the Fab-four bowlers across formats in international cricket

Here are the four bowlers who have performed admirably well in all forms of international cricket.

Every fan knows by heart who is the fab-four batsman of today’s generation. India’s Virat Kohli, Australia’s Steve Smith, New Zealand’s Kane Williamson, and England’s Joe Root are widely considered to be the best batsmen of today in both red and white-ball formats.

While Kohli and Williamson are brilliant in all three formats, Root and Smith have struggled in the shortest format of the game. However, this had led to discord between followers of the game, as there is no sure shot fab four of bowling across formats. A group of four bowlers is yet to be identified, who perform amazingly well in all the three formats over a period of time.

Therefore, Team COC takes a cursory look at the potential candidates who can be termed as the fab four of the bowling in international cricket.

Here are the Fab-Four bowlers across formats in international cricket

TRENT BOULT (New Zealand)

Trent Boult of New Zealand has amazed everyone across formats with his ability to pick wickets at any stage of the game in any of the three formats. His ability to quickly transform his game according to the format he is playing has made him incredibly successful in international cricket.

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The left-arm pacer had made his debut in 2011 in a Test against Australia at Hobart. His ODI debut came in 2012 against the West Indies and in T20Is, he played his first match against England in 2013. Since then, he has 256 wickets in 65 Tests, 164 wickets in 89 ODIs and 39 scalps in 27 T20I matches.

Apart from this, he is a gun fielder and leading the pace attack of New Zealand in all three forms of the game. Boult has rarely failed whenever his captain has called him onto do the job and he was the joint-most wicket-taker in the 2015 World Cup with Mitchell Starc, picking 22 scalps and took 17 in the 2019 event, including a hat-trick.

His performances have made New Zealand a team to be wary off despite their perennial underdog stature.  

KAGISO RABADA (South Africa)

There has been no greater and exciting talent to debut in international cricket from South Africa in recent times than Kagiso Rabada. The 24-year-old hailing from Johannesburg has made an immediate impact upon arrival in ODIs, picking best-ever figures on debut 6/16, including a hat-trick against Bangladesh.

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Since then, he has 197 wickets in just 43 Test matches, 117 wickets in 75 ODIs, while he has 28 scalps in 21 T20I matches. He has often been on the receiving end of the ICC when it comes to his over the top celebrations after picking a wicket. Rabada has been on the top half of the ICC rankings for a while and has owned his spot in the South Africa team with his incredible talent.

Rabada has done well in all the three formats given his incredible talent with the ball, his stamina and every ounce of spirit he has for his team.

PAT CUMMINS (Australia)

Australia’s Pat Cummins had an impressive start to his career way back in 2011. But a serious back injury cost him five years of his career as he recuperated slowly but surely to get back to peak fitness. He then made a good comeback in 2017 and has not looked back since then.

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Cummins became the leader of the pack for the Australian team in all three formats despite a break in between when his back issues flared up again. But he has been able to be the workhorse for the Kangaroos in Tests and ODIs when the much-applauded Mitchell Starc struggled with his line and length and confidence.

Cummins has 143 wickets in 30 Tests, 98 scalps in 61 ODIs and 32 wickets in 25 T20I matches for the Australia team. He has also played in IPL and BBL with big success and was recently the most expensive foreign player ever when Kolkata Knight Riders bought him for INR 15.50 crore in IPL 2020 auction. Definitely deserved a spot in the fab-four of bowling in recent times.  

JASPRIT BUMRAH (India)

Jasprit Bumrah was a discovery of the Mumbai Indians’ scouts just before the IPL 2013. He made his debut for the MI in that season and with the mentoring, he got from Lasith Malinga, and through his own hard work has become one of the most sought after bowlers in the whole world.

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Bumrah made his India debut in 2016 in T20Is against Australia and since then has proved his detractors wrong, who said with his awkward action, he won’t be suitable for longer formats of the game. He made his Test debut in 2018 against South Africa and since then has picked 62 wickets in 12 Tests, 104 scalps in 64 ODIs and 59 wickets in 50 T20I matches.

Despite his unusual action and a recent scare of a stress fracture in the back, Bumrah has made quite an impact on the cricketing world, gathering praise from all over the world, changing opinions of many of his critics.