Top 10 test bowlers of the year 2014

New Delhi: Despite cricket being batsmen's game, test bowlers can take pride in their performance during the year 2014.The year witnessed some of the great bowling performances from across the cricketing World. Indian lanky pacer Ishant Sharma too figures in the list of top ten test bowlers.From a year in which the pacers ruled the roost and spinners though very few, found new-found success in tough conditions, we pick ten defining bowling performances.Take a look:1) Rangana Herath (Sri Lanka)Sri Lanka's mystery spinner Rangana Herath claims the top spot in the list with 60 wickets in 20 test innings with an economy of just 2.69 and average of 27.45.Herath recorded the best test bowling figures of 9/127 in 12 years in second Test against Pakistan in August 2014.He followed the feat with another 5-wicket haul in the second innings of the match and finished with a career-best 14/184, surpassing his previous mark of 12/157 against Bangladesh last yearPreviously in the first test he took 9 wickets, 3 in first and 6 in second.Only 16 men have taken nine wickets or more in a Test innings. The last man to accomplish the feat was Herath's former team-mate Muttiah Muralitharan, who took 9-51 against Zimbabwe at Kandy in 2002.He has the maximum five-wicket hauls (5) in the year 2014.2) Mitchell Johnson (Australia)One of the most feared fast bowlers in the world, Mitchell Johnson is at no. 2. He has second highest 42 wickets in his pocket in 16 innings at an economy of 3.06 and average of 21.92.Johnson took a freak 12-127 in February 2014 to hand South Africa their worst loss at home in almost 60 years.He also had the second best bowling figures in an innings with 7 wickets for 68 runs which was followed by another five wicket haul.His match figures are the best by a fast bowler against South Africa since their readmission into Test cricket.Johnson's 12-wicket match haul is the first by a fast bowler in a Test in more than eight years: the last time it happened was in September 2005, when Irfan Pathan took 12 for 126 against Zimbabwe in Harare. 3) James Anderson (England)The English fast bowler who routed Indian batsmen in 5-test series in July-August 2014 sits at no. 3 in the list. In 16 innings, he has 40 wickets, just two short of second ranked Johnson. His economy rate and average has been 2.68 and 22.15 respectively.He recorded his best bowling figures in the year with the only five wicket haul (5/53) in third test against India followed by 2 wickets in the second innings. His match figures of 7/77 in the test have been the best of him in the year.He was the leading wicket taker in the series with 25 wickets in 10 innings at an economy of just 2.58 and was also adjudged as Man of the Series jointly with India's Bhuvneshwar Kumar.4) Dale Steyn (South Africa)Arguably the no. 1 fast bowler in the world, Dale Steyn is the fourth best bowler of the year. With just 1 wicket short of Anderson, he has 39 wickets in 14 innings at an economy of 3.09 and has the best average 18.33 in the list.He ripped through the West Indies top order to claim his 25th five-wicket haul (6/34) in test cricket and give South Africa an innings and 220-run in the first test of ongoing test series.He is now set to overtake Makhaya Ntini as the second-highest wicket-taker in Test for his country. He moved to 389 wickets in the longest format of the game with his six-wicket haul.Ntini claimed 390 Test wickets in his career from 101 matches at an average of 28.82, but Steyn raced to one behind the mark of Ntini's in just 76 matches at a remarkable average of 22.44.He recorded his best match figures with 9/99 against Sri Lanka in July 2014. This was his best match figures against Sri Lanka in Tests, as he bettered the 6/54 at Centurion in December 2011. This is also the best bowling performance by a South African in Test vs Sri Lankan in Sri Lanka. In fact, no other fast bowler has done as well in a Test played at Galle, which hosted its first five-day match back in June 1998.5) Ishant Sharma (India)The only Indian and probably the best Indian pacer in recent times Ishant Sharma is at no. 5 with 36 wickets in 12 innings at an economy of 3.53 and an average of 28.86.He had his best bowling performance of the year in July 2014 during the second Investec test at Lord's against England.Team India played comprehensive cricket and re-wrote history when the side - led by Ishant Sharma's 7/74 - beat England by 95 runs to win any test match at Lord's after a long wait of 28 years on July 21, 2014. This was also India's first overseas win since 2011.In the first test against New Zealand in February 2014 he took 6/134 and 3/28 in two innings, thus recorded his best match figures of 9/162 in the year but finished on a losing note. 6) Dilruwan Perera (Sri Lanka)Sri Lanka's off break spinner Dilruwan Perera who made his test debut against Pakistan in January 2014 is 6th best bowler this year with 36 wickets in 13 innings at an economy of 2.98 and averages 30.08.He recorded his first five wicket haul (5/109) against Bangladesh in February which was followed by his career best figures of 5/69 in second test against South Africa in July 2014. His best match figures (8/129) too came in the same match when he bagged another three protea wickets in second innings.He came up his third five wicket haul (5/137) in the year against Pakistan in the month of August.However it was with the bat that he made his first impression in Tests. Perera fell just 5 short of his maiden hundred in his test debut against Pakistan.7) Nathan Lyon (Australia)Nathan Lyon, the right arm off-break bowler and one of the main reasons of the downfall of Indian batting line up in the ongoing test series is at no. 7. He has a total of 31 wickets in 16 innings at an economy of 3.53 and has the average of 41.45, the worst in the list.In the first test against India at Adelaide he started with his second five wicket haul (5/134) of the year which was followed by another fifer (7/152) and went on to record his career best match figures of 12/286.The 12-wicket haul by Nathan Lyon makes him the second Australian off-spinner in more than 100 years to have 12 wickets in a match. This figure is also the most by an Australia bowler against India. Among Australian spinners, Jason Krejza picked up 12 wickets as well at Nagpur in 2008, but he conceded 358 runs in that match while Lyon gave away 286, making Lyon's figures the best by an Australian spinner against India. 8) Stuart Broad (England)England's pacer Stuart Broad with 30 wickets in 15 innings at an economy and average of 2.63 and 26.70 respectively, is at no. 8 in the best bowlers list.He did not had much impressive year and managed to get just one five wicket haul which came against India in 4th Investec test in August 2014.He picked up 6/25 in first innings of the test and rattled Indian batting line up which were bowled out for a mere 152. This was his year-best performance as he was not able to bowl in the second innings due to a bouncer which hit his nose while batting and had a minor hair-line fracture.He was adjudges as the Man of the Match for his performance.He was also the third highest wicket taker in the 5-test series with 19 wickets in 9 innings at an economy of 2.48.9) Sulieman Benn (West Indies)The only Caribbean in the list, slow left-arm orthodox and 6'7” Sulieman Benn is at no. 9. He has 30 wickets in 11 innings in his name at an economy of 2.43 and an average of 28.30.He picked up his first five wicket haul (5/93) of the year against New Zealand in June 2014. He followed this performance with another 5-wicket and his year best of 5/39 in first test against Bangladesh in September and added two more in second innings to record his best match figures (7/83) of the year.In the same month and in the 2nd innings of second test against Bangladesh, he came up with another five wicket haul and second best (5/72) and recorded his another match best of (7/91).10) Shaminda Eranga (Sri Lanka)The third Sri Lankan in the list, pacer Shaminda Eranga sits at the last position in the list. He has 29 wickets in 15 test innings at an economy of 2.96 and an average of 31.48.He may not have any five-wicket haul in the year but his career best bowling performance (4/49) in an innings of test cricket against the hosts Bangladesh in first test in January 2014 certainly led the island nation to a huge victory by 248 runs.He recorded his career best match figures of 6/226 against England in the 1st Investec test in June 2014. He bagged 3/163 in first innings and 3/63 in second in order to achieve the feat.He followed this up by his second best match figures in the year (5/131) in the second Investec test.Shaminda Eranga's ODI and Test debuts were both spectacular. In his first ODI, against Australia in 2011, he needed only two balls to make an impact, bowling Brad Haddin through the gate. An even more memorable dismissal followed, when Ricky Ponting failed to read his slower ball and pushed back a return catch.He then made his Test debut against the same opposition, and became only the second Sri Lankan and 15th bowler in the history of test cricket to strike with his very first delivery, when he dismissed Shane Watson.

Top 10 test bowlers of the year 2014

New Delhi: Despite cricket being batsmen's game, test bowlers can take pride in their performance during the year 2014.The year witnessed some of the great bowling performances from across the cricketing World. Indian lanky pacer

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