Stats: Mitchell Starc becomes fastest bowler to take 100 ODI wickets
In the first ODI between Sri Lanka and Australia, an ODI record that had stood for nearly two decades was finally broken. When Mitchell Starc dismissed Dhananjaya de Silva, he became the fastest bowler to take 100 ODI wickets. The Australian fast bowler now has 101 wickets in 52 ODI matches.
After winning the toss and electing to field, Australia got off to the perfect start thanks to Starc who picked up the early wicket of Kusal Perera, finished with figures of 10-1-32-3 and easily claimed the record.
The previous record was held by Pakistan’s Saqlain Mushtaq who took 53 matches to achieve that milestone. In the second match of the Independence Cup in 1997 against Sri Lanka, the off-spinner, who would go on to finish with 288 ODI wickets, got his 100th ODI scalp which gave him the record.
While Starc got there in fewer matches, he took a lot longer to achieve it. While the 39-year-old off-spinner took a year and 225 days to claim 100 ODI wickets, the 26-year-old left-arm fast bowler took nearly six years since his debut in 2010 to get there.
The off-spinner himself claimed it from another Pakistani bowler. Waqar Younis may be joint-sixth on the current list but when he brought up his 100th ODI wicket in 1993, he broke Dennis Lillee’s record which was set 10 years earlier.
Since Saqlain set the record nearly two decades ago, Shane Bond came closest to breaking, when he got to his 100th wicket in 54 matches and even Imran Tahir was close to breaking the record at some point last year but eventually had to be content with getting there in 58 matches, five fewer than Mushtaq.
India’s Irfan Pathan and two more legendary Australian bowlers feature in the top ten which is dominated by the team from down under, with four players on the list.
The 26-year-old still has time on his side and having recently completed 100 Test wickets as well, will be hoping to break a few more records before he is done. If not the tally of most wickets in ODIs, which is still a long way away, then at least the fastest to milestones such as this.
And if he continues to be lethal with his accuracy and swing at the start and end of the innings you wouldn’t bet against him claiming at least another record or two before he calls it a day.
Here is the list of bowlers who were quickest to the 100 ODI wickets mark.
| No. | Bowler | Opposition | Matches |
| 1. | Mitchell Starc (AUS) | Sri Lanka | 52 |
| 2. | Saqlain Mushtaq (PAK) | Sri Lanka | 53 |
| 3. | Shane Bond (NZ) | England | 54 |
| 4. | Brett Lee (AUS) | England | 55 |
| 5. | Imran Tahir (RSA) | West Indies | 58 |
| 6. | Waqar Younis (PAK) | Zimbabwe | 59 |
| 6. | Irfan Pathan (IND) | Pakistan | 59 |
| 6. | Morne Morkel (RSA) | New Zealand | 59 |
| 10. | Dennis Lillee (AUS) | Zimbabwe | 60 |
| 10. | Shane Warne (AUS) | West Indies | 60 |
| 10. | Shoaib Akhtar (PAK) | New Zealand | 60 |
| 10. | Nathan Bracken (AUS) | South Africa | 60 |