In today’s era, cricketer rules have been made to favor batters, and viewers can enjoy six-hitting. Bowling has always been a challenging task for every player. In modern-day cricket, every bowler has ever bowled a wide ball. But some great bowlers who never bowled a wide ball in their entire career.
1. Richard Hadlee
Richard Hadlee is the most fantastic all-rounder that New Zealand has ever produced. In test cricket, he still holds the record for highest wickets for New Zealand. One of the main reasons behind his success was his accurate line and length, which made him a complete fast bowler of his time. In his career, Richard Hadlee bowled 21,918 balls in tests and 6,182 balls in ODIs. Throughout his career, he never bowled a wide ball, which shows his accuracy and quality as a bowler. Richard Hadlee played 86 tests and 115 ODIs in his career, taking 431 and 158 wickets, respectively.
2. Dennis Lillee
Dennis Lillee is one of the greatest and most lethal fast bowlers that Australia has ever produced. In his prime, all batters used to fear him as he was ruthless towards every batter. Apart from his lethal fast bowling, Dennis Lilee was also one of the most disciplined fast bowlers. In his international career, Dennis Lillee bowled more than 22,000 balls. Still, he never bowled a wide ball, which shows his excellent bowling length and accuracy. Dennis Lillee played 70 tests and 63 ODIs in his career, taking 355 and 103 wickets, respectively.
3. Bob Wills
Bob Wills was a former right-arm fast-bowler of England. Bob Wills bowled many great spells in his career, especially against Australia in 1981, where he destroyed Australia by taking their eight wickets. Bob Wills was among the rarest bowlers who never bowled a wide ball in international cricket. Bob Wills played 90 tests and 64 ODIs for England but never bowled a wide ball. Bob Wills took 325 wickets in tests and 80 in ODIs in his international career.
4. Imran Khan
Imran Khan is one of the greatest captains and all-rounders that Pakistan has ever seen. As a captain, he led Pakistan in the 1992 World Cup and won the first-ever World Cup for Pakistan. Undoubtedly, Imran Khan was one of the best all-rounders who could win the match with bat and bowl. He was always disciplined about his bowling accuracy, line, and length. Imran Khan has never bowled a wide ball in his career of more than 20 years. Imran Khan played 88 tests and 175 ODIs in his international career, taking 362 and 182 wickets, respectively.
5. Gary Sobers
Gary Sobers is a former and one of the greatest all-rounders of the West Indies. He is one of the most reputed cricketers in the world. At one time, Gary Sobers held the record for the highest runs in test innings. Undoubtedly, he is once in a once-in-a-century player. Besides his batting performance, Gary Sobers was also good with his bowling. Gary Sobers played more than 90 tests in his career and never bowled a single wide ball. As a bowler, this shows his accuracy and discipline in bowling. Gary Sobers played 93 tests in his career, taking 235 wickets with an economy of only 2.22.
6. Ian Botham
There was a time when every good team used to have one great all-rounder. Like Pakistan had Imran Khan, West Indies had Gary Sobers. In contrast, England also had a great all-rounder like Ian Botham. He is the most excellent all-rounder that England has ever produced. No one can forget his hero in the 1981 Ashes. Every all-rounder must perform for their team with bat and ball, and Ian Botham used to do it very effortlessly. In his career, Ian Botham had always been accurate with his line and length, and that’s why he never bowled a single wide ball in his career of 102 tests and 116 ODIs, where Ian Botham took 383 and 145 wickets, respectively.
7. Lance Gibbs
Lance Gibbs is a former right-arm off-spinner of the West Indies. Very few bowlers maintain an economy of less than two, and Lance Gibbs is one of them. That’s why he was one of the most successful bowlers of the 1960s. One of the main factors behind his bowling was his accurate line and length, and his stats also prove the same. Throughout his career, Lance Gibbs never bowled a wide ball. In his career, Lance Gibbs played 79 tests in which he took 309 wickets with a fantastic economy of 1.98.
8. Fred Trueman
Fred Trueman was one of the leading players of England in the 1950s. He was a right-arm fast-bowler for England and became the main reason for England’s success. Fred Trueman was the first bowler to take 300 wickets in tests, and his overall stats are incredible. Fred Trueman played 67 tests in his career, taking 307 wickets with an excellent economy of 2.6. As a fast bowler, his accuracy, line, and length were unbelievable, and that’s why he never bowled a single wide ball in his career.
9. Derek Underwood
Derek Underwood is a former left-arm off-spinner from England. He was also the president of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). Derek Underwood is one of the most respected English players in the world. His bowling talent was sensational. With the help of a bowling line and disciplined length, Derek Underwood never bowled a wide ball. Derek Underwood played 86 tests and 26 ODIs in his career, taking 297 and 32 wickets, respectively.
10. Clarrie Grimmett
Clarrie Grimmett was a right-arm leg-spinner from Australia. In international cricket, he represented Australia from 1925 to 1936. Even in 1st class, Clarrie Grimmett had one of the most fantastic bowling stats. In 1st class cricket, he played 248 matches and took 1,424 wickets. In test cricket, Clarrie Grimmett played 37 games and took 216 wickets, which shows his unbelievable bowling skills. By his exceptional bowling talent, Clarrie Grimmett never bowled a single wide in his career.
