Best bowling figures in T20: Seven-wicket hauls standout in batter-friendly format

Although Twenty20 or T20 cricket is widely considered to be a batsman’s game, there have been several instances where bowlers have stolen the limelight with some record-breaking feats.

These bowling performances become even more commendable since there are just four overs for a bowler to not only stop the flow of runs but also provide breakthroughs in what is nothing short of a slogfest for batters.

Indonesia Women's off-spinner Rohmalia holds the record for the best bowling figures in T20 - 7/0. She achieved her figures in her debut match against Mongolia Women in the fifth T20 of the bilateral series played in Bali in April 2024. Chasing 152 for the win, Mongolia were bundled out for just 24, with six batters dismissed on ducks.

Rohmalia, just 17 at the time, took three wickets in just her first over -- the 11th of the innings -- and bowled 3.2 overs in all.

Netherland Women’s pacer Frederique Overdijk and Argentina Women's Alison Stocks held the record earlier with 7/3. While Overdijk achieved her figures against France Women in 2021, Stocks tormented Peru in 2022.

Best bowling figures in T20

Electing to bat first, the French had no answer to Overdijk’s pace bowling and ended up with just 33 runs on the board. None of their batters could score in double digits.

Interestingly, Frederique Overdijk bowled 24 dot balls in her spell but gave away three wides. Netherlands Women won by a comfortable nine-wicket margin.

Stocks' rampage, meanwhile, bundled out Peru for just 31, handing Argentina a resounding 10-wicket win.

Among men, Malaysia's Syazrul Idrus boasts the best bowling effort in T20 cricket, registering figures of 7/8 in an ICC Men's T20 World Cup Asia B Qualifier 2023 match against the People's Republic of China in Kuala Lumpur. It stands as the record for the best bowling figures in men’s T20 Internationals.

After electing to bat, China were bowled out for a paltry 23 succumbing to Syazrul Idrus' medium pace. The spell included four wickets in his second over (fourth of the innings), which included the breakthrough for the hosts. Malaysia went on to win the match by eight wickets.

Colin Ackermann, however, is the first player to pick seven wickets in a T20 match. The Leicestershire batting-all rounder registered figures of 7/18 in a T20 Blast 2019 match against Birmingham Bears.

Defending Leicestershire’s 189/6, off-spinner Ackermann provided an early breakthrough and then came back into the attack in the 15th over to clean up the Bears.

Colin Ackermann took three wickets in the 15th over and three more in the 17th to steer Leicestershire to 55-run win.

Among full-member nations of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Indian pacer Deepak Chahar’s 6/7 against Bangladesh in 2019 is the record for the best bowling figures in T20I.

Leading a relatively inexperienced bowling attack, Deepak Chahar bowled with aplomb, taking a hat-trick as India defeated Bangladesh by 30 runs.

On the other hand, Esther Mbofana of Zimbabwe holds the women’s record among full members in T20 internationals.

On her T20 International debut in 2021, Esther Mbofana sent back more than half of Eswantini (formerly Swaziland) Women’s line-up, snaring six wickets for 11 runs. Four of her six victims were out without opening their account as the team bundled out for 17 runs only.

Zimbabwe Women notched a 10-wicket win with 108 balls remaining. Esther Mbofana’s 6/11 remains the best bowling display on debut in T20 Internationals.

For the Indian women’s cricket team, pacer Jhulan Goswami has recorded the best bowling figures with her 5/11 against Australia in 2012.