Cricket World Cup / Editor / 04 April 2007 / Leave a comment

Some unexpected names feature in the top wicket taker market. Whilst the likes of Matthew Hayden, Graeme Smith, Ricky Ponting and Jacques Kallis spring no surprises in contesting the top runscorer market, few will have expected Lasith Malinga to lead the wicket-taking charts at this stage of the tournament.

'Malinga the slinger' has 13 wickets to his name and trades at 5.1 to finish as top wicket taker, although he does have some familiar names for company. Compatriot Muttiah Muralitharan is trading at 5.3 with 11 scalps so far and Glenn McGrath, who is the all-time World Cup top wicket taker, is available at 5.7. Both he and Charl Langeveldt, the other surprise package in this market, have claimed 12 victims.

This tournament was tipped to be high scoring and the bowlers have had to work hard for their wickets. Six of the 10 highest ever World Cup totals have come in the current tournament and whilst the 'minnows' bowling attacks were on the receiving end of most of those hammerings, the small boundaries and decent wickets have favoured the batsmen in contests between the major teams.

Whilst the lesser teams have struggled in the field, it appears that they have made progress with the bat. The 2003 tournament in South Africa saw 12 five-wicket hauls- one every 4.5 games. This time around only Langeveldt, with 5-39 against Sri Lanka, has claimed a 'five-for', after 32 matches.

Individual bowlers have not run through batting line-ups with ease and there have been no returns like McGrath's 7-15 versus Namibia, or Chaminda Vaas' 6-25 against Bangladesh that we saw in 2003.

Vaas ended the 2003 event as top wicket taker with 23 but, despite possessing the second best economy rate in the West Indies, he is virtually out of the running to repeat the feat this time around. The Sri Lankan seamer has seven wickets so far and trades at 46.

Vaas is fourth on the all-time World Cup wicket taker's list that is now led by McGrath. The Aussie legend overtook Wasim Akram in his man-of-the-match performance against Bangladesh and will bow out of international cricket at the end of the tournament with a record that will take some beating.

McGrath took 21 victims in South Africa, at an average of 1.91 per game, a figure which was distorted by his performance against the hapless Namibians. He is averaging 2.4 wickets per game this time around and is fancied in this market partly because his team look guaranteed of a semi-final place - Sri Lanka are the fourth most fancied team to reach the semi-finals, trading at 1.24.

'Pigeon' also looks like getting the better of another of his rivals in one of the head-to-head markets. He must have been considered the outsider against Shaun Pollock, who came into the tournament on the back of 19 wickets in nine games against India and Pakistan and as the world's number one ranked bowler.

Whilst McGrath has prospered in a series of improved Australian bowling displays, Pollock has been flayed by opposing opening batsmen who usually find him so hard to attack. He bowled 18 wicket-less overs against Australia and Sri Lanka, at a cost of 129 runs and now trades at 4.3 in the head-to-head with McGrath, who punters must now ask for in this market.

Pollock clearly does not relish bowling in the Caribbean, as he has only taken more than two wickets in an innings once, and now averages 40 from 16 appearances. He has taken four wickets in this tournament and has slipped to 34 in the top wicket taker market, having started it fourth in the betting at 14.5.

Makhaya Ntini is another Proteas' paceman who has struggled. Pollock's new ball partner has claimed three scalps from four matches and is available at 42 in the top wicket taker market.

It has been something of a surprise that South Africa's main bowling threats have been Langeveldt - 12 wickets at 19.33 - and Andrew Hall, who has claimed nine victims at 21.44. South Africa's title challenge is relying on an all-pace attack and these two trade at 10 and 15 respectively to continue to upstage their compatriots and top the wicket taking charts.

One man who has not disappointed is Shane Bond. The Kiwi speedster has not quite been in the explosive form he showed in 2003, when he took 17 wickets in eight matches, including a memorable 6-23 against Australia, but his four appearances so far have brought him eight wickets.

Bond has been the tightest bowler on show, with an economy rate of just 2.29 and has conceded less than 20 runs in three of his four matches. He is available at 15.5. Bond thrives on playing against the best, averaging less than 14 against Australia, and looks assured of extra games as the in-form Kiwis have nearly booked their semi-final berth already. They trade at 1.07 to do so and have shortened to 5.9 in the winner's market.

The Black Caps' star man would have been proud of Malinga's record-breaking burst of four wickets in four balls against South Africa. The Sri Lankan was hit for 18 from his opening two overs but bounced back to prove that he can be as effective with the old ball as he was with the new in decimating the top orders of Bangladesh and Bermuda.

Malinga's unconventional action might have caught opposing batsmen by surprise, but he has been showing promise for some time. He now has taken 52 wickets in 33 matches at an average of 23.38. His strike rate of 29.2 is the fourth best ever of any player to have bowled more than 1,000 balls in ODIs.