Joe Root was the unlikely bowling hero for England in the third Test at Ahmedabad against India. He took 5 wickets for 8 runs to help England bowl out India for just 145 runs. But England could not save the Test despite their captain's heroics.
Root, a part-time off-break bowler, hardly bowls in Test cricket and had taken just 32 wickets in his 101 Tests prior to the Ahmedabad Test. However, thanks to some assistance from the pitch, Root delivered for his team, with a five-wicket haul. The England captain could not believe his luck either. But there have been instances in the past when batsmen have shocked themselves with great hauls in international cricket. Cricwizz takes a look.
Michael Clarke
The former Australian skipper was known for scoring big tons, including 329* against India. However, he had a thing with his left-arm bowling. He scored 8643 runs in Tests, but also picked up 31 wickets, including 2 five-wicket hauls. His best spell of slow bowling came in the 2004 Mumbai Test against India when he took 6/9 to trigger a batting collapse, and slump India from 182/4 to 205 all out. However, the performance came in a lost cause as India won the match by 13 runs on a spinner’s paradise. His other five-wicket haul came against West Indies in the 2012 Roseau Test when he took 5/86. Australia won the match by 75 runs.
Sachin Tendulkar
The God of Cricket was blessed with a golden arm as he broke partnership regularly, and even bamboozled batsmen with his variations. Sachin, who bowled a mix of leg-break and off-break, has 2 five-wicket hauls in ODIs. His best was the 5/32 against Australia at Kochi in 1998, when he turned the match around with the ball after Australia looked comfortably placed in overhauling a target of 310. His second five-wicket haul also came at Kochi in 2005 when he took 5/50 to bowl out Pakistan for 194, and give India an 87-run win. However, Sachin has not recorded any five-wicket haul in the Test, with his best being 3/10.
Sourav Ganguly
Dada was a part-time medium-pacer, but he was extremely lethal in helpful conditions. In the ODI series against Pakistan in Toronto, Ganguly took his best bowling figures of 5/16 in the third ODI to bowl out the arch-rivals for 148 as India won by 34 runs. His second and last five-wicket haul (5/34) came against Zimbabwe in Kanpur ODI in 2000 as India won by 9 wickets. Ganguly also contributed with the ball in Tests, with the best bowling figures of 3/37 and once even opened the bowling in the five-day format.
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