Top 5 worst bowling figures by an Indian spinner in T20Is ft. Ravi Bishnoi
Team India and Australia kicked off their five-match T20I series in Visakhapatnam on Thursday, November 23.
The two teams just competed for the biggest prize in the sport in the 2023 World Cup final that saw the Aussies clinch an incredible sixth title. Considering the T20Is have begun only four days since the grand finale, both teams have rested several key players.
However, the series will begin the build-up to the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA in June next year.
The batting evolution in the shortest format has witnessed a meteoric rise over the years, as the bowlers continue to be on a hiding to nothing. With the bat size increasing by the day and smaller boundaries becoming prominent to meet the crowd demands for higher-scoring games, the spinners, in particular, have suffered.
Despite India being renowned for its ability to produce world-class spinners, they have also been taken to the cleaners on occasion.
Considering that, let us look at the top five worst bowling figures by an Indian spinner in T20Is.
#1 Yuzvendra Chahal - 0/64 vs South Africa
It is now commonplace to watch South African batter Heinrich Klaasen treat spinners with utter disdain.
Yet, his coming-out party was at the expense of Indian leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal in 2018. After a surprisingly one-sided ODI series saw India wallop the hosts South Africa 5-1, the T20Is were evenly-contested.
Paramount to India's success in the ODIs was the mystery spin of Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, making the Proteas' batters dance to their tunes. However, their lone win in that series was thanks to Klaasen's heroics, and the destructive batter was in his elements again in the T20Is.
After falling behind 0-1 and facing another embarrassing home series defeat, South Africa needed 189 to win the second T20I. And at 38/2, defeat looked inevitable until the 32-year-old launched a brutal attack on Chahal.
Klaasen smashed three sixes in his first two overs and continued the carnage with two sixes and a boundary off the first three deliveries of his third over. Clueless against the onslaught, the 33-year-old spinner conceded 64 runs off his four overs.
The Proteas won by six wickets, with Chahal finishing with the worst bowling figures by an Indian spinner in T20Is.
#2 Krunal Pandya - 0/55 vs Australia
The 2018 Tour of Australia was among the most memorable for Indian fans, with the side winning a historic Test series and the following ODI series. However, it did not start positively for Team India down under, with a closely-fought T20I series.
The opening game was a rain-shortened 17-over affair and left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya took the brunt of the Australian carnage. With the other bowlers proving hard to get away, the Aussies targeted Pandya, and the now-32-year-old wilted under pressure.
He conceded almost 1/3rd of the runs with figures of 55/0 in four overs, as Australia amassed 158/4 in their 17 overs. Krunal's day further worsened, as he succumbed to the pressure with the bat as well. He scored only two off four deliveries, as India suffered a four-run defeat.
#3 Krunal Pandya - 0/54 vs New Zealand
Krunal Pandya bears the misfortune of being featured on this uncherished list twice, thanks to his woeful bowling against New Zealand in 2019.
Following a one-sided ODI series that the Men in Blue won 4-1, the T20I series was nodded at 1-1 heading into the decider. However, on a belter of a track in Hamilton, the Blackcaps posted a mammoth 212/4 in their 20 overs.
Krunal endured a shocking start, conceding 20 runs in his first over. A comeback in his second over with only four runs became fool's gold, as he continued bowling his remaining two overs.
A 14-run third over and an even worse 16-run final over meant that the 32-year-old gave away over 50 for a second time in India's 2018-19 Trans-Tasmanian tour. Pandya finished with 0/54 in four overs, as India suffered a four-run defeat to lose the series 1-2.
#4 Yusuf Pathan - 1/54 vs Sri Lanka
For a long time, part-time off-spinner Yusuf Pathan held the dubious record for the worst bowling figures by an Indian spinner in T20Is.
The now-retired cricketer unraveled in the opening T20I against Sri Lanka in their tour of India in 2009. On a batting beauty in Nagpur, Sri Lanka were off to a brilliant start of 43/0 in the powerplay.
However, it was skipper Kumar Sangakkara's masterful 78 off 37 deliveries and Angelo Matthews' finishing cameo of 15* off four that inflicted the most damage on Pathan. At 1/34 in three overs, the off-spinner was forced to bowl the final over of the innings, which Sangakkara and Matthews maximized with a boundary and two sixes.
Pathan finished with woeful figures of 1/54 in four overs despite dismissing Mahela Jayawardene in his penultimate over. Sri Lanka finished with a massive 215/5 and emerged victorious by 29 runs.
#5 Ravi Bishnoi - 1/54 vs Australia
Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi overtook teammate Axar Patel to suffer the fifth most expensive T20I figures for an Indian spinner in the series opener today.
Unlike the other four, the 23-year-old enjoyed a sensational beginning to his spell, with a wicket in his first over. Yet, after a five-run opening over, Bishnoi was smashed for three sixes and a boundary by centurion Josh Inglis off his next two overs to slip to 1/33 in three overs.
His final over was the worst of the lot as Inglis smoked three more sixes to take him past the dismal 50-run mark off his four overs. Bishnoi finished 1/54 in his four overs as the Aussies finished on 208/3 in their 20 overs.
Thankfully for the leg-spinner, his spell did not cost India the game as they chased the score down off the final delivery of the match to register a thrilling two-wicket win.