It will not be a wrong statement to say that cricket is a batsman’s game. That is why whenever we talk about the legends of the game, mostly batters come to mind. But a team can’t win a game without having a good batting line-up. They also need bowlers who can take wickets in any conditions and on any surface.
Over the years, the game has seen many great bowlers who went on to trouble the best of the best batters with their line and length. This article will also talk about great bowlers who had an incredible career. In this article, we will talk about the bowlers who retired with a wicket on their last ball of their career.
1. Glenn McGrath
Glenn McGrath was a one-of-a-kind bowler who was renowned for his line and length, and with this he found immense success. He became the first pacer to take over 500 wickets in test cricket and represented his country for 14 years. In his international career, he took 949 wickets in all formats and had a fairytale ending. He dismissed James Anderson on his last ball in a test while picking up the wicket of Paul Nixon in an ODI on the last ball of his career.
2. Lasith Malinga
Lasith Malinga was probably the best white-ball bowler that Sri Lanka has ever produced. He was known for his deadly yorkers and slingy action. Malinga registered five hat-tricks across formats, which is a world record. He played his last ODI in Colombo against Bangladesh and dismissed Mustafizur Rahman on the last ball of his international career.
3. Muttiah Muralitharan
Whenever cricket is discussed, Muttiah Muralitharan will surely feature in that discussion. The man who ended with over 1300 international wickets and took the most wickets in ODIs and Tests will be remembered for a long time. Murali was an incredible bowler who holds many records in this game. He dismissed Pragya Ohja on his last ball of his test career to take 800 wickets.
4. Richard Hadlee
Famously known as Sir Richard Hadlee, he was the best all-rounder from New Zealand. He won his country numerous games on his own with his bowling and batting. Hadlee was the first player to take 100 wickets and score 1,000 runs in ODIs. He was the best bowler of his era. He ended up taking 431 wickets in 86 test matches. His last test came against England, and he took the wicket of D. Malcolm on his last ball of his test career.
5. Stuart Broad
English pacer Stuart Broad recently joined this elite list and became the first English bowler to take a wicket on the last ball of his career. Broad dismissed Alex Carey in the second innings of the fifth and final test at the Oval to help his team win by 49 runs. This win also helped England level the Ashes 2023 series at 1-1. Broad retired with 604 wickets in 167 tests.
6. Adam Gilchrist
Not many will believe this, but Australia’s finest wicketkeeper batter Adam Gilchrist also features on this list. His last competitive match came for the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) against the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. MI needed 51 runs to win with only one wicket in hand. Gilchrist came out to bowl and took the wicket of Harbhajan Singh on the first ball of his last over to help his team win the game.
