This article explores the elite list of bowlers who have dominated white-ball cricket on foreign soil, highlighting the record-holders for the most wickets in away ODIs.
Most Wickets in Away ODIs
| Player | Innings | Wickets | Best Bowling (Innings) | Average | Economy | Strike Rate | 4W/5W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wasim Akram (PAK) | 118 | 168 | 5/16 | 23.89 | 3.86 | 37.00 | 7/3 |
| Muttiah Muralitharan (SL) | 104 | 160 | 5/23 | 24.71 | 4.14 | 35.70 | 6/4 |
| Chaminda Vaas (SL) | 113 | 151 | 5/39 | 28.04 | 4.38 | 38.30 | 6/1 |
| Shahid Afridi (PAK) | 133 | 140 | 7/12 | 34.56 | 4.63 | 44.70 | 2/2 |
| Brett Lee (AUS) | 85 | 132 | 5/41 | 26.41 | 4.94 | 32.00 | 4/2 |
| Waqar Younis (PAK) | 88 | 131 | 7/36 | 26.45 | 4.60 | 34.40 | 3/3 |
| Mitchell Johnson (AUS) | 69 | 114 | 6/31 | 25.07 | 5.00 | 30.00 | 4/3 |
| Lasith Malinga (SL) | 69 | 111 | 5/30 | 29.29 | 5.42 | 32.40 | 4/2 |
| Zaheer Khan (IND) | 81 | 110 | 4/19 | 30.96 | 4.96 | 37.40 | 3/0 |
| Glenn McGrath (AUS) | 81 | 108 | 5/52 | 26.72 | 4.07 | 39.30 | 2/1 |
| Abdul Razzaq (PAK) | 86 | 103 | 6/35 | 27.71 | 4.60 | 36.10 | 5/1 |
| Shaun Pollock (SA) | 91 | 103 | 4/36 | 29.23 | 3.78 | 46.30 | 3/0 |
| Kyle Mills (NZ) | 69 | 102 | 5/25 | 26.19 | 4.78 | 32.80 | 5/1 |
| Adil Rashid (ENG) | 60 | 102 | 5/85 | 29.23 | 5.68 | 30.80 | 5/1 |
Key Insights on Leading Wicket Takers in Overseas ODIs
Legendary Performance Records in Away ODIs
Pakistan’s Wasim Akram has taken the most wickets in away ODIs, with 168 scalps to his name.
Akram took four wickets in an innings seven times, the most by a bowler in overseas ODIs. And he is tied with Muttiah Muralitharan for the most four-plus wicket hauls in away ODIs, with both taking 10 each.
Muralitharan has bagged the most five-wicket hauls in away ODIs, having taken four. See who tops the overall list here.
The Sri Lankan spinner’s 160 wickets are the most by a spinner in overseas ODIs, with England’s Adil Rashid being the only other tweaker with 100-plus scalps.
Akram took 48 of his 168 scalps while leading Pakistan, making it the most by a captain in overseas ODIs. Akram is also the only captain with 150 wickets in ODI cricket overall.
Muralitharan (113) and Chaminda Vaas (108) picked up 221 wickets together, the most by a bowling pair in away ODIs.
Best Bowling Figures and Milestone ODI Spells
Shahid Afridi has delivered the best bowling figures in an away ODI match, returning 7 for 12 against the West Indies in the 2013 Providence ODI.
Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan (7/18 vs WI), Pakistan’s Waqar Younis (7/36 vs ENG), and South Africa’s Imran Tahir (7/45 vs WI) are the other bowlers with a seven-wicket haul in an away ODI innings.
Rashid Khan and Michael Holding (West Indies) are the only two bowlers who average below 20 in away ODIs (minimum 1000 balls bowled).
The Afghani leggie is also one of the two bowlers, along with Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis, to have a strike rate below 26 in away ODIs. See adds to this elite list in the overall list here.
West Indies’ Joel Garner has the lowest economy rate, having taken 64 wickets at an economy of 3.27 in 45 away ODI innings.
Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal has taken the most overseas wickets in a calendar year in ODIs, fetching 38 scalps at an average of 20.18 in 20 innings in 2013.
Check: Most ODI Wickets in a Calendar Year
Venue Specific and Country Wise ODI Records
Michael Holding took 49 wickets in 31 innings in Australia, making it the most wickets by a bowler in an overseas country in ODIs.
Akram (38 in Australia & 37 in New Zealand) and Lasith Malinga (33 in Australia & 32 in England) have taken 30 or more wickets in two overseas countries in ODIs.
Harbhajan Singh (Colombo RPS), Curtly Ambrose (Melbourne), Michael Holding (Sydney), Muralitharan (Harare), and Rashid Khan (Harare) have 20 or more wickets each at a specific overseas ground in ODIs.
Find out which bowler has picked the most wickets at a single ODI venue (home+away+neutral) here.