Best Bowling Figures in T20 International Cricket: Top Bowling Figures & Records

T20 cricket gives bowlers very little room for error, making exceptional spells especially valuable. The Best bowling figures in T20 International cricket showcase performances where bowlers combine accuracy, wicket-taking ability, and control to restrict the opposition. Terms such as best Bowling Figures in T20, best T20I bowling figures, best bowling performance in T20I, and record bowling figures are commonly used to describe these outstanding displays.

These performances are an important part of Best Bowling Figures in T20 records, T20I bowling records, and Twenty20 International bowling records. The best figures by a bowler in T20I, top T20I bowling figures, and best bowling spell in T20 international are judged through wickets, runs conceded, economy rate, and match impact.

Best Bowling Figures in T20 by Wickets and Runs

The best Bowling Figures in T20 cricket are measured by the combination of wickets in an innings and runs conceded. A bowler who takes five or more wickets while giving away very few runs produces an exceptional wicket-taking performance and can completely change a match. The current leading T20I figures include Sonam Yeshey’s remarkable 8/7 for Bhutan against Myanmar, followed by Syazrul Idrus’ 7/8 for Malaysia against China.

A six-wicket haul, five-wicket haul, or even a four-wicket haul can represent a match-winning bowling spell, but the combination of wickets and economy makes the bowling analysis particularly impressive. The table below highlights some of the leading bowling figures and their overs bowled, showing how these record bowling performances have created memorable individual bowling records.

Rank	Bowler	Team	Opponent	Bowling Figures	Overs Bowled
1	Sonam Yeshey	Bhutan	Myanmar	8/7	4.0
2	Syazrul Idrus	Malaysia	China	7/8	4.0
3	Ali Dawood	Bahrain	Bhutan	7/19	4.0
4	Harsha Bharadwaj	Singapore	Mongolia	6/3	4.0
5	Peter Aho	Nigeria	Sierra Leone	6/5	3.4
6	Deepak Chahar	India	Bangladesh	6/7	3.2
7	Dinesh Nakrani	Uganda	Lesotho	6/7	4.0
8	Ajantha Mendis	Sri Lanka	Zimbabwe	6/8	4.0
9	Moazzam Baig	Malawi	Rwanda	6/9	4.0
10	Rizwan Butt	Bahrain	Malawi	6/9	4.0

T20I Bowling Average and Strike Rate

T20I bowling average measures the runs per wicket a bowler concedes, while the T20I bowling strike rate measures the balls per wicket. Generally, a lower average and lower strike rate indicate better bowling effectiveness and wicket-taking ability.

Together, these statistics help measure bowling consistency and wickets per match. A bowler’s career bowling average, career bowling strike rate, and other individual bowling statistics provide a broader view of performance across their T20I career.

T20I Five-Wicket and Six-Wicket Hauls

• T20I five-wicket haul: Taking five wickets in a T20I innings is a rare bowling achievement because a bowler can deliver a maximum of four overs.
• T20 international five-wicket haul: A T20I five-for is also called a fifer and represents a best bowling Figures in T20 milestone.
• Five wickets in T20I: The first men’s T20I five-for was Umar Gul’s 5/6 against New Zealand in 2009.
• Six wickets in T20I: A six-wicket haul is even rarer. Ajantha Mendis, Yuzvendra Chahal and Deepak Chahar are among the bowlers to achieve this feat.
• Outstanding figures: Best bowling figures in T20 such as 5/5, 5/6, 5/7 and 6/10 demonstrate exceptional control and wicket-taking ability.
• Five-for and six-for record: These performances can become an important individual bowling record, particularly when a bowler taking five wickets or a bowler taking six wickets does so with very few runs conceded.

Also Read this: Emerging T20 Cricket Players: Young Stars, Batters, Bowlers & Future Prospects

Best Bowling Figures in a T20I Match

The Best Bowling Figures in T20 cricket is Sonam Yeshey’s 8/7 in four overs against Myanmar in 2025, setting a record T20I bowling spell for the highest wickets in a T20I innings. His figures combined eight wickets with extremely low runs conceded, making it a remarkable best bowling analysis and T20I record performance.

Before this historic T20I match, spells involving five wickets, six wickets, and seven wickets had already produced memorable match-winning spells. Performances such as Syazrul Idrus’ 7/8 also demonstrate extraordinary bowling dominance, often causing an opposition collapse and creating a lasting individual match record.

Guinness World Record for Best T20I Bowling Figures

• Guinness World Records: The current Guinness record for the best bowling figures in a Twenty20 International (male) belongs to Bhutan’s Sonam Yeshey, who took 8/7 against Myanmar on 26 December 2025.
• T20I world record: Yeshey became the first bowler to take eight wickets in a T20I, making his figures a remarkable T20I bowling world record and a historic bowling performance.
• Record-breaking bowling figures: His 8/7 in four overs is recognized as the best bowling figures in T20 in male cricket, surpassing the previous seven-wicket benchmark.
• Record bowling spell: Before Yeshey’s achievement, Syazrul Idrus had taken 7/8 for Malaysia against China in 2023, while several other bowlers had recorded seven-wicket hauls.
• T20I statistical record: These figures represent one of the most extraordinary Guinness cricket records and an important international cricket world record, demonstrating how a single spell can completely transform a T20I match.
• Important note: Guinness lists separate records for male and female T20Is. In women’s T20I cricket, Brazil’s Laura Cardoso set a remarkable 9/4 record against Lesotho on 9 April 2026.

ICC T20I Bowling Rankings

The ICC men’s T20I bowling rankings rate international bowlers according to their performances and ranking points. The official T20I bowling rankings currently list Rashid Khan first with 753 rating points, followed by Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed and England’s Adil Rashid.

These rankings help identify the best bowling figures in T20 and compare T20I ranked bowlers across international cricket. A bowler’s position can change after strong or poor performances, while a career-best ranking, ICC bowling ranking, and overall T20I player rankings provide useful context when evaluating long-term international bowling rankings.

Also Read: Most Sixes in ODI Cricket: Rohit Sharma, Afridi & Top Six Hitters

T20I Bowling Records by Country

The following table highlights notable T20I bowling records and the best bowling figures associated with major full-member and associate nations. These performances show the range of international T20 bowling records, from Pakistan’s Sufiyan Muqeem producing 5/3 to Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan recording 5/3.

Country	Best T20I Bowling Figures	Bowler
India T20I bowling records	6/7	Deepak Chahar
Pakistan T20I bowling records	5/3	Sufiyan Muqeem
Australia T20I bowling records	5/13	Andrew Tye
England T20I bowling records	4/2	Adil Rashid
South Africa T20I bowling records	5/24	Tabraiz Shamsi
New Zealand T20I bowling records	4/12	Lockie Ferguson
Sri Lanka T20I bowling records	6/8	Ajantha Mendis
West Indies T20I bowling records	6/17	Obed McCoy
Afghanistan T20I bowling records	5/3	Rashid Khan
Bangladesh T20I bowling records	5/22	Mustafizur Rahman
Ireland T20I bowling records	4/13	Mark Adair
Zimbabwe T20I bowling records	4/8	Sikandar Raza
Nepal T20I bowling records	4/19	Kushal Bhurtel
Associate nation bowling records	Varies by nation	Several record holders

T20I Bowling Figures Formula and Scorecard Terms

Understanding bowling figures makes it easier to judge a T20I bowler’s performance. A scorecard normally lists overs, maidens, runs conceded, and wickets in the format O–M–R–W. For example, 4–0–20–3 means four overs, no maidens, 20 runs conceded, and three wickets.

• Economy rate: Runs conceded ÷ overs bowled; it shows the bowler’s runs per over.
• Bowling average: Runs conceded ÷ wickets, showing how many runs are conceded for each wicket.
• Bowling strike rate: Balls bowled ÷ wickets; a lower figure means the bowler takes wickets per innings more frequently.
• Legal deliveries: One over contains six legal deliveries, while wides and no-balls are illegal deliveries and must be re-bowled.
• Dot balls: Deliveries from which no runs are scored, helping a bowler build pressure.
• Boundaries conceded: Fours and sixes hit off the bowler, which can quickly increase the runs conceded.
• Extras conceded: Wides and no-balls are examples of extras that can add to a bowler’s figures.

Fast Bowlers and best bowling figures in T20 Records

T20I fast bowlers can make a major impact through pace bowling, seam movement, and swing bowling, particularly during new-ball bowling. Bowlers with raw pace and express bowling can create early pressure and take crucial powerplay wickets, while young fast bowlers continue to add depth to international attacks.

At the other end of an innings, death bowling requires precise yorkers, bouncers, and slower balls to control scoring. Leading pacers have produced outstanding T20I records across these phases; Shaheen Shah Afridi, for example, is among the leading fast-bowler wicket-takers in T20Is and has an especially strong powerplay record. A wicket-taking pace bowler who can combine speed with variation can therefore become a key part of a successful fast bowling attack.

What Makes a best bowling figures in T20 Performance

A best bowling figures in T20 performance combines wicket-taking ability, low runs conceded, economical bowling, and bowling accuracy. Strong line and length, pace variation, spin variation, and dot-ball pressure help prevent boundaries, while powerplay control can create early breakthroughs.

At the death, death-over execution, yorker accuracy, slower-ball variations, and bouncer variations are crucial. The best bowlers also focus on reading the batter, bowling under pressure, match awareness, and smart T20 tactical bowling to turn an excellent spell into a match-winning performance.