Cricket World Cup History: 3 most successful left-arm fast bowlers at the mega event
Left-arm fast bowlers are considered as 'X-factors' in the world of cricket. They have a unique bowling angle which allows them to trouble both right-handed as well as left-handed batsman.
With the emergence of T20 format, the demand for left-arm pacers is now greater than ever before. If we look at successful international teams or IPL franchises, all of them have left-arm fast bowlers in the side.
A closer look at the World Cup 2019 squads reveals that almost every team has a left-armer who is an integral part of the team's bowling department. Pakistan have Mohammad Amir, Shaheen Afridi and Wahab Riaz, Australia have Jason Behrendorff and Mitchell Starc, New Zealand have Trent Boult, West Indies have Sheldon Cottrell, Bangladesh have Mustafizur Rahman while Sri Lanka have Isuru Udana.
Throughout history there have been several left-arm fast bowlers who have dominated the World Cup. Here's a look at the 3 most successful left-arm fast bowlers in World Cup history -
#3 Zaheer Khan
Matches - 23, Wickets - 44, Maidens - 12, Best Bowling Figures - 4/42
India's greatest left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan had a terrific World Cup career. He kicked off his World Cup journey in Africa in 2003 and ended it with a memorable campaign in 2011.
Zaheer was a part of two World Cup finals, and his individual performance helped Team India a lot at the mega-event.
He was the joint highest wicket-taker at the 2011 World Cup, a tournament which India won, while his best bowling performance of 4/42 came against New Zealand in the year 2003. With an economy rate of 4.47 and an average of 20.22, Zaheer is India's most successful bowler at the World Cups.
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