Year-ender 2016: Top 10 spells in Tests

A techie and a banker from the subcontinent claimed wickets at will, and emerged as the best bowlers of 2016. Both spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin (72 wickets at 23.90 in 2016) and Rangana Herath (57 wickets at 18.92 in 2016) comfortably sit at No. 1 and No. 3 positions respectively in the ICC Test Bowlers’ Rankings. While these men ruled the roost there were other inspirational performances that decided the course of Tests. Yasir Shah and Ravindra Jadeja had their moments too. The top spin bowlers had good run but the pacers caught up too. Mitchell Starc was exceptional in unresponsive wickets in Sri Lanka while the younger likes of Josh Hazlewood and Kagiso Rabada rose in stature.

Mohammed Shami and Dale Steyn’s comeback was inspiring while Mohammad Aamer promised a lot. There were times when the English seamers ran through oppositions and for that matter, even West Indies bowlers, who for long have been lacklustre, won them a Test against Pakistan at Sharjah and earlier almost won the Dubai Test too. It is bowlers, who win you Tests and 2016 witnessed enough action. Amidst the sea of brilliant performances in this year, Suvajit Mustafi picks the Top 10 bowling spells from 2016.

10. Mitchell Starc – 4 for 36 vs Pakistan at Melbourne

Two days of toil and two sessions of brilliance summed up the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne in 2016. Persistent rain had ensured that the Test was heading towards a draw. Pakistan made the Australian bowlers toil till almost lunch of Day Three. Australians, aided by hundreds from Steven Smith and David Warner, declared on the final day with a lead of 181.

On a good batting track, it was unlikely that Australians could force a result as Pakistan had batted well in their last two outings. Mitchell Starc who had bludgeoned a 91-ball 84 earlier in the day, struck immediately after lunch. Babar Azam was out leg before. Nathan Lyon ran through the middle-order dismissing Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq but the dangerous Sarfraz Ahmed could have still saved the day for Pakistan.

Starc was getting the ball to reverse. The delivery that claimed Sarfraz brought back memories of Wasim Akram at the same venue almost 25 years back. Akram had cleaned-up Chris Lewis in a similar fashion in the World Cup Final. It was Australia’s game from there.

Wahab Riaz and Yasir Shah, who had put up a fight with the willow in the first Test, were consumed by Starc’s pace and swing, both fell without scoring. He had turned the game in two sessions. Watch.

Brief scores:                  

Pakistan 443 for 9 decl. (Azhar Ali 205*, Asad Shafiq 50, Sohail Khan 65; Josh Hazlewood 3 for 50, Jackson Bird 3 for 113) & 163 (Azhar Ali 43, Sarfraz Ahmed 43; Mitchell Starc 4 for 36, Nathan Lyon 3 for 33) lost to Australia 624 for 8 decl. (David Warner 144, Usman Khawaja 97, Steven Smith 165, Peter Handscomb 54, Mitchell Starc 84; Sohail Khan 3 for 131, Yasir Shah 3 for 207) by an innings and 18 runs.

9. Vernon Philander – 5 for 21 vs Australia at Hobart

The sides contested closely at Perth with South Africa pulling off an inspiring win. The venue shifted to Hobart and the conditions were suited to seam bowling. In favourable conditions, Vernon Philander is an asset. In absence of Steyn, Philander put his hand up and terrified the hosts.

He was getting the ball to nip around and using that to his advantage, he adjusted his length well. He had sent back Warner, Usman Khawaja and Adam Voges and his figures read 3 for 3 when he had a painful collision. He was out of the ground but came back and continued to torment Australia accounting for the wickets of Joe Mennie and Nathan Lyon.

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In just over a session’s play, Australia were bowled out for 85 and that is where they lost the Test. Philander did not take a wicket on the final morning but built the pressure from the other end. He bowled probing lines that benefited Kyle Abbott and Kagiso Rabada from the other end. He bowled 30 consecutive dot balls on the fourth day. He kept Smith on check from one end.

Ultimately, it was Abbott who claimed 6 and Rabada 4 as South Africa went on to win another series Down Under. However it was Philander’s five-for that built the foundation block for the win.

Brief scores:

Australia 85 (Steven Smith 48*; Vernon Philander 5 for 21, Kyle Abbott 3 for 41) & 161 (David Warner 45, Usman Khawaja 64; Kyle Abbott 6 for 77, Kagiso Rabada 4 for 34) lost to South Africa 326 (Hashim Amla 47, Temba Bavuma 74, Quinton de Kock 104; Mitchell Starc 3 for 79, Josh Hazlewood 6 for 89) by an innings and 80 runs.

8. Mitchell Starc – 5 for 44 & 6 for 50 vs Sri Lanka at Galle

The Starc-show was Australia’s lone bright point in otherwise a miserable Test series in Sri Lanka. His performance will give Australia some confidence ahead of the India tour this year. After losing the first despite a first innings lead, Australia managed to restrict Sri Lanka to 281 in the first innings at Galle. Starc was the pick of the bowlers with a five-for.

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Australia were bundled out for 106 after Herath’s hat-trick. However Sri Lanka’s second innings was kept short courtesy another lethal spell from Starc. In unresponsive wickets for pace bowling, he got the ball to reverse and used his pace to advantage to claim his career best of 6 for 50.

It is another story that Australia, chasing 413 collapsed to 183, and ended up conceding the series. For a change it was Dilruwan Perera who outshone Herath in this Test claiming match-figures of 10 for 99 and scoring a breezy 64 at No. 8 in the second innings.

Brief scores:

Sri Lanka 281 (Kusal Perera 49, Kusal Mendis 86, Angelo Mathews 54; Mitchell Starc 5 for 54) & 237 (Angelo Mathews 47, Dilruwan Perera 64; Mitchell Starc 6 for 50) beat Australia 106 (David Warner 42; Rangana Herath 4 for 35, Dilruwan Perera 4 for 29) & 183 (David Warner 41; Dilruwan Perera 6 for 70) by 229 runs.

7. Yasir Shah – 6 for 72 & 4 for 69 vs England at Lord’s

All the hullaballoo centred on Mohammad Aamer’s return to Test cricket at Lord’s, the very venue that brought his downfall. Misbah-ul-Haq took the centre stage by becoming the oldest cricketer to score a ton at Lord’s.

Pakistan had put up 339. By now Yasir Shah with his wily leg spin had made a massive reputation for himself but this was his first Test outside Asia. The murmurs were ‘would he be that effective?’

He responded to them by wreaking havoc in the English middle-order, claiming figures of 6 for 82 in the first innings. Pakistan managed a 67-run lead. Yasir later contributed with a vital 30 lower down the order to help Pakistan set England 283 to win.

England are formidable at home and with the likes of Joe Root, Alastair Cook and an in-form Jonny Bairstow in ranks, the target was in reach. Yasir once again ran through the England middle-order claiming a four-for this time and completing a 10 wicket-haul to script one of Pakistan’s most remarkable wins in their history.

Brief scores:

Pakistan 339 (Mohammad Hafeez 40, Misbah-ul-Haq 114, Asad Shafiq 73; Stuart Broad 3 for 71, Chris Woakes 6 for 70) & 215 (Asad Shafiq 49, Sarfraz Ahmed 45; Stuart Broad 3 for 50, Chris Woakes 5 for 32) beat England 272 (Alastair Cook 81, Joe Root 48; Yasir Shah 6 for 72) & 207 (James Vince 42, Gary Ballance 43, Jonny Bairstow 48; Rahat Ali 3 for 47, Yasir Shah 4 for 69) by 75 runs.

6. Ravindra Jadeja – 3 for 106 & 7 for 48 vs England at Chennai

The fifth Test was a dead rubber. A Test that was played on a placid surface and heading towards a draw. Ravindra Jadeja had spent most of the season under the shadows of Ashwin till he decided to call it ‘enough’.

Karun Nair’s triple ton helped India to a 282-run lead. England went to lunch on Day Five at 97 for 0. All of a sudden, Jadeja infused life into a dead game by making the post lunch his own. He claimed Cook for the sixth time in the series. He got the English captain to flick one down to the leg-slip.

England were 167 for 4 at tea. Jadeja had taken 3 wickets and a spectacular catch. With the deck still flat, Jadeja relied on his strength, line and length than turn. He kept it tight and reaped rewards. England succumbed to his discipline and some tight bowling from Ashwin at the other end.

The wicket-to-wicket bowling helped him scalp 3 in the first innings. He continued the same way and triggered another English lower and middle-order collapse. He finished with his career best of 7 for 48, and registered his maiden 10-wicket haul in a Test.

Brief scores:

England 477 (Joe Root 88, Moeen Ali 146, Jonny Bairstow 49, Liam Dawson 66*, Adil Rashid 60; Ravindra Jadeja 3 for 106) & 207 (Alastair Cook 49, Keaton Jennings 54, Moeen Ali 44; Ravindra Jadeja 7 for 48) lost to India 759 for 7 decl. (KL Rahul 199, Parthiv Patel 71, Karun Nair 303*, Ravichandran Ashwin 67, Ravindra Jadeja 51) by an innings and 75 runs.

5. RavichandranAshwin – 6 for 112 & 6 for 55 vs England at Mumbai

2016 was Ashwin’s year. He picked wickets with ease and scored runs at critical juncture. Not only he is the No. 1 ranked Test bowler but also comfortably sits in the pinnacle position of the all-rounder’s table.

Losing two back-to-back Tests in Visakhapatnam and Mohali, England arrived in Mumbai in a do-or-die encounter. Mumbai has happy memories for England. From their World Cup semi-final win in 1987 to Andrew Flintoff’s shirtless celebration to the two  Test victories in this century, England had hopes when they arrived in the commercial capital.

Cook elected to bat and England did well to pile up 400. The surface was good for batting but there was sharp turn as well. It was Ashwin’s six-for that proved to be the difference between 400 and a total in excess of 500.

Murali Vijay and Jayant Yadav’s hundred, and Virat Kohli’s brilliant double ton propelled India to 631. With almost a day and half remaining in the Test England batted again. Jadeja and the pacers dug in-roads in the English line-up and almost till the end of Day Four, Ashwin remained wicket-less. At the stroke of stumps he got Ben Stokes and Jake Ball.

With Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler at crease England were expected to put in some fight but Ashwin wrapped up things in the first half an hour. Just one spell proved to be decisive.

Before his final spell, he had bowled 11 overs for 40 runs and gone wicket-less. His final figures read 20.3-3-55-6. India had won a series against England after losing the previous three.

Brief scores:

England 400 (Alastair Cook 46, Keaton Jennings 112, Moeen Ali 50, Jos Buttler 76; Ravichandran Ashwin 6 for 112, Ravindra Jadeja 4 for 109) & 195 (Joe Root 77, Jonny Bairstow 51; Ravichandran Ashwin 6 for 55) lost to India 631 (Murali Vijay 136, Cheteshwar Pujara 47, Virat Kohli 235, Jayant Yadav 104; Adil Rashid 4 for 192) by an innings and 36 runs.

4. Mehedi Hasan Miraz – 6 for 82 & 6 for 77 vs England at Dhaka

England finally decided to tour Bangladesh and the teenaged all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz was included in the Test side. He was a sensation in the Under-19 World Cup in early 2016. The management showed faith in the young off-spinner by making him open the bowling.

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He claimed a six-for on his debut but England, riding on Ben Stokes’ heroics, pulled off the thriller in their favour. In the second Test in Dhaka, Bangladesh batted first and a special hundred from Tamim Iqbal guided the side to 220. Mehedi’s six-for restricted the English lead to 24.

England were set 273 and they were cruising at 100 for no loss at tea on Day Three. A dramatic collapse ensued. A collapse architected by the young Mehedi, who was getting turn and drift. He claimed another six-for, this third in the fourth Test innings that he had bowled.

He was well supported by the experienced Shakib Al Hasan who picked 4 as England folded for 164, handing Bangladesh their first ever win against them. The series was drawn level. Mehedi had given Bangladesh one of their finest moments.

Brief scores:

Bangladesh 220 (Tamim Iqbal 104, Mominul Haque 66; Chris Woakes 3 for 30, Moeen Ali 5 for 57) & 296 (Tamim Iqbal 40, Imrul Kayes 78, Mahmudullah 47, Shakib Al Hasan 41; Ben Stokes 3 for 52, Adil Rashid 4 for 52) beat England 244 (Joe Root 56, Chris Woakes 46, Adil Rashid 44*; Mehedi Hasan 6 for 82, Taijul Islam 3 for 65) & 164 (Alastair Cook 59, Ben Duckett 56; Mehedi Hasan 6 for 77, Shakib Al Hasan 4 for 49) by 108 runs.

3. Rangana Herath – 6 for 81 and 7 for 64 vs Australia at SSC Colombo

Australia, the then No.1 side, never expected a series defeat against a rebuilding Sri Lankan side. One man was tipped as the thorn, Herath. And the banker lived up to his reputation. Muttiah Muralitharan eclipsed the early bit of Herath’s career and here was a little battle that the latter won.

Australia had Murali in their camp as their spin consultant but that didn’t help the visitors escape defeats in the first two Tests. Australia had a lot of pride to play for in the final Test. Sri Lanka had put up 355 and Australia were cruising at 267 for 1 when Herath came in his own and ran through the middle-order restricting the Australian lead to 24.

Set 324 for a win, Australia were going for it. David Warner went ballistic while Shaun Marsh held the fort at one end. Australia had moved to 77 for no loss when Dilruwan Perera dismissed Marsh. From thereon it was a Herath show. The wily left-armer spun a vicious web around the Australian middle-order to bundle them out for 160. Sri Lanka won 3-0. Australia lost their No.1 ranking. Herath finished with 28 wickets from 3 Tests at 12.75!

Brief scores:

Sri Lanka 355 (Dinesh Chandimal 132, Dhananjaya de Silva 129; Mitchell Starc 5 for 63, Nathan Lyon 3 for 110) & 347 (Kaushal Silva 115, Dinesh Chandimal 43, Dhananjaya de Silva 65*; Nathan Lyon 4 for 123) beat Australia 379 (Shaun Marsh 130, Steven Smith 119, Mitchell Marsh 53; Rangana Herath 6 for 81) & 160 (David Warner 68; Rangana Herath 7 for 64) by 163 runs.

2. Stuart Broad – 6 for 17 vs South Africa at Johannesburg

Till lunch on Day Three, this was an evenly contested Test between two competitive sides. In just a matter of session the momentum shifted England’s way as they registered a famous win by the end of day’s play.

That is Stuart Broad for you.

Usually, there is nothing alarming about the pacer in most of his outings but then he can produce spells, such spells that can see a side wind up in a session. Yes, that’s Broad for you. He did that in Johannesburg and with it the series entered English pockets.

South Africa had put up 313 and England managed a 10-run lead. The hosts cleared the deficit by lunch on Day Three as they went in at 16 for no loss.

Broad is a showman that makes him a match-winner. Broad almost repeated the Trent Bridge of 2015. He claimed 5 or more wickets in a single Test spell for the seventh time in his career (that’s what I was referring to). He went past Bob Willis’ tally of 325 and was now England’s third-highest wicket-taker. The hallmark was the probing length that he bowled.

By the next session, South Africa were 71 for 8. Broad had dismissed the top 6 — Dean Elgar, Stiaan van Zyl, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis and Temba Bavuma. They folded for 83 as England completed the chase in the final session of the day.

Brief scores:

South Africa313 (Dean Elgar 46, Hashim Amla 40; Ben Stokes 3 for 53) & 83 (Stuart Broad 6 for 17) lost to England 323 (Joe Root 110, Ben Stokes 58, Jonny Bairstow 45; Kagiso Rabada 5 for 78, Morne Morkel 3 for 76) & 74 for 3 (Alastair Cook 43) by 7 wickets.

1. Devendra Bishoo – 8 for 49 vs Pakistan at Dubai

Azhar Ali graced the second-ever day and night Test, Pakistan’s 400th overall as he scored a triple ton. The Day One saw only one wicket falling. Pakistan declared at 579. West Indies fought hard and Darren Bravo’s 87 got them to 357.

Pakistan did not enforce follow-on and decided to extend the lead. Leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo hit back. He was aided by some overambitious strokeplay by Pakistanis but to his credit, he got the ball to turn. Bishoo’s career best led to Pakistan skittle for 123. He had infused life into the Test and all of a sudden, West Indies were in the game and had an outside chance of winning it.

Bravo almost won the Test for his side. West Indies were in the hunt till the final session of Day Five. Yasir Shah produced a spectacular caught and bowled to end the Bravo brilliance for 116. Pakistan despite the first innings 579 just managed to sneak in a 56-run win.

Brief scores:

Pakistan 579 for 3 decl. (Sami Aslam 90, Azhar Ali 302*, Asad Shafiq 67, Babar Azam 69) & 123 (Sami Aslam 44; Devendra Bishoo 8 for 49) beat West Indies 357 (Darren Bravo 87, Marlon Samuels 76; Yasir Shah 5 for 121) & 289 (Leon Johnson 47, Darren Bravo 116, Jason Holder 40*; Mohammed Aamer 3 for 63) by 56 runs.

Other notable mentions:

Bhuvneshwar Kumar on his Test comeback claimed 5 for 33 at St. Lucia. India had put up 353 and West Indies were looking good at 202 for 3 when Bhuvi struck. He got the ball to swing and bowled on right channels to end the West Indies innings for 225. India went on to win the Test by 237 runs.

Dale Steyn’s comeback was ruthless. In the rain-marred Durban Test against New Zealand, the South African pacer was unplayable in his six-over spell. He gave away 3 runs and claimed 2 wickets. The overcast conditions and the dampness assisted him and so did Philander at the other end. It was a torrid one hour that New Zealand survived before the skis opened up and there was no further play. In the following Test, Steyn picked a five-for helping South Africa win.