Haris Rauf of Pakistan (R),Jasprit Bumrah of India (C) and Shaheen Shah Afridi of Pakistan (Photo by Surjeet Yadav/Getty Images)
It is the biggest cricket event of the calendar year. The top eight teams of the world will lock horns in the ICC Champions Trophy slated to start in Karachi from the 19th of February. The tournament will feature some of the best bowlers in international cricket and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top in conditions pretty much unknown to most teams and pundits. From Shaheen Shah Afridi to Haris Rauf, from Adam Zampa to Kuldeep Yadav, from Kagiso Rabada to Adil Rashid, RG looks at five bowlers who could make the maximum impact in the tournament.
1. Shaheen Shah Afridi
Shaheen Shah Afridi has been in scintillating form with the ball and has bagged 63 wickets in just 30 matches at an average of 23.8 and strike rate of 24.9 since 2023. His exploits include two four-fers and one five-wicket haul in this time-frame.
Afridi will be doubly dangerous in familiar conditions at home – he has an outstanding record in Pakistan with 31 wickets in 16 ODIs at home at an average of 24.7. He also has fine returns in the UAE picking 13 wickets in six matches at an average of 17.6!
Afridi has the ability to make the new ball talk! He is a nightmare for right-handers as his stock delivery goes straight with the angle but then he also slips one which swings back in, making the batter a candidate for LBW or bowled. Afridi has an economy of 5 in the powerplay in ODI cricket. Interestingly, he is even more lethal at the death where he has picked 49 wickets at an average of 15.4 and strike rate of 12.5!
The in-swinger is his most productive delivery and has brought him 42 wickets at a brilliant average of 20.6 and economy of 4.8! Afridi was one of the standout bowlers of the 2023 World Cup in India where he returned with 18 wickets in just nine matches at an average of 26.7 and economy of just under 6.
2. Haris Rauf
Haris Rauf is the quickest of the Pakistani pacers and the second-most successful fast bowler in ODI cricket in the last couple of years. Rauf has bagged 54 wickets in 31 matches at an average of 25.9 and strike rate of 26.9 with two fifers and as many four-wicket hauls since 2023.
Rauf operates mainly in the middle overs but is at his devastating best at the death. He has an average of 12.5, strike rate of 11.4 and economy of just 6.6 in the final 10 overs.
Rauf’s stock delivery is the in-swinger which has fetched him 43 wickets at an average of 22.5 and economy of 5.1.
3. Matt Henry
Matt Henry has been New Zealand’s best fast bowler with 39 wickets in 22 matches at an average of 24.9 since 2023. His ability to pick wickets stands out in his 85-match career where he has already accounted for 155 dismissals at an excellent strike rate of 29.3 – the sixth-best in ODI history (min. 150 wickets) after Mohammed Shami, Mitchell Starc, Ajantha Mendis, Rashid Khan and Trent Boult!
Henry can generate serious pace and consistently touch 145 kms per hour. Coupled with this is his accuracy and that makes him a lethal bowler especially with the new ball. Henry has a fantastic record in the first 10 overs with 69 wickets at an average of 22.5 and economy of just 4.3.
Henry has had a fine start to 2025 already bagging 14 wickets in five innings at an average of 14.6 and strike rate of 19.2, including two four-wicket hauls.
4. Adam Zampa
In the absence of the trio of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, the onus will be on leggie, Adam Zampa to lead Australia’s attack at the Champions Trophy.
Zampa is Australia’s leading wicket-taker in ODIs since 2023 with 53 dismissals in 31 matches at a strike rate of 29.1. He has taken a four-wicket haul on as many as five occasions during this period.
Zampa was in exceptional form with the ball in the 2023 World Cup in India and was the second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 23 dismissals in just 11 matches at an average of 22.39 and economy of 5.36.
133 of Zampa’s 180 career wickets have come against right-handers at an average of 27 and strike rate of 29.9!
5. Adil Rashid
Adil Rashid will be England’s trump card with the ball in the middle-overs in favourable conditions in Pakistan. Rashid is the third-highest wicket-taker in England’s ODI history after James Anderson and Darren Gough. The leg spinner has bagged 212 wickets in 140 innings and been in top-form in the last couple of years. Rashid is England’s highest wicket-taker since 2023 with 43 wickets in 27 matches at an average of 30.9.
Rashid was in good form in the 2023 World Cup in India and returned with 15 wickets at an average of 27.5. He was England’s standout bowler and the only shining light in their 3-0 drubbing by India and picked seven wickets at 27 apiece. Rashid varied his pace and bamboozled the Indian batters with his deception and turn. He was particularly impressive when he bowled slower, giving the ball more air and flight.
Rashid’s stock delivery is the googly which has fetched him 64 wickets at an average of 16.2, economy of 4.9 and strike rate of 19.7.
Nikhil Narain is a die-hard cricket romantic, published author, and has worked for some of the leading digital websites and broadcasters in India and overseas. An alumnus of the London School of Economics, Nikhil's forte is using data and numbers creatively to weave interesting stories and revolutionize the way cricket statistics are generated and analyzed.
