With batsmen plundering boundaries at will in modern-day cricket, there is no room to hide for bowlers.
Here are three occasions when it was not a great day to be an ODI bowler:
Mick Lewis (113 runs from 10 overs)
Australia's Mick Lewis may have played only seven one-day international matches but he will always be remembered in the sport. Lewis was part of an iconic match which changed the face of modern-day cricket.
On 12 March, 2006, South Africa were up against Australia in a 5-match ODI series. The 5th and last match of the series was tied at two each, with both teams going into the decider. In the absence of Australia and South Africa's lead bowlers Glenn McGrath and Shaun Pollock respectively, it was a field day for batsmen.
Australia blasted 434/4 from their 50 overs, with Ricky Ponting shining with a 105-ball 164. This was the maiden occasion when a team had scored more than 400 runs in an ODI. Well, South Africa were not the one to choke on this occasion. A brilliant assault led by Herschelle Gibbs and captain Graeme Smith meant that South Africa could continue to believe.
Gibbs (175 runs off 111 balls) made the highest score by a South African. Mick Lewis, who had made his debut at the age of 31, was playing his 7th ODI which also turned out to be his last one, conceded 113 runs from his 10 overs. South African succeeded in registering the highest successful chase and also the highest score in ODI cricket as a sorry Mich Lewis continues being the most expensive bowler in an ODI inning.
Rashid Khan (110 runs from 9 overs)
Rashid Khan, who is renowned for his economical bowling, was taken to the cleaners by England and Eoin Morgan in particular in a World Cup 2019 group match. One of the top ODI bowlers, Rashid registered the most expensive figures in the history of the World Cup that day.
The leg-spinner was taken for 110 runs from 9 overs at the Old Trafford. England posted 397/6 on the back of Eoin Morgan's 148 runs off just 71 balls.
Wahab Riaz (110 runs from 10 overs)
Wahab Riaz is one of the better bowlers at the death for Pakistan, but he does have his off days. In 2016, when the England white-ball unit was in red-hot form, England blasted the second-highest ODI total ever (444/3), courtesy of Alex Hale’s 122-ball 171, Buttler’s 51-ball 90 and Morgan’s 27-ball 57.
Riaz conceded 110 runs from his 10 overs and went wicketless. Talk about a bad day at work!
