This article lists the top 10 examples of most dot balls bowled by bowlers in an ODI innings. the batsmen hit the bowlers a lot. That’s why bowlers always try to end their spell with less runs even if they don’t take a wicket.
The trick is to hit as many dot balls as possible to give less runs. A series of dot balls puts pressure on the opposition batsmen, causing them to make mistakes and take wickets.
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Dot ball tactics swing momentum towards the bowling side, helping them prevent the opposition from scoring big.
Some skilful bowlers pushed back the batsmen with their disciplined bowling and earned many dot balls in their spells.
Most dot balls bowled by bowlers in an ODI innings
| PLAYER | DOT BALLS | OVERS BOWLED | AGAINST | VENUE | DATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Curtly Ambrose (WI) | 55 | 10.0 | Scotland | Leicester | 27 May 1999 |
| Sunil Joshi (IND) | 55 | 10.0 | South Africa | Nairobi | 26 Sep 1999 |
| Shakib Al Hasan (BAN) | 55 | 10.0 | Zimbabwe | Mirpur | 19 Jan 2009 |
| Glenn McGrath (AUS) | 54 | 10.0 | India | Sydney | 14 Jan 2000 |
| James Anderson (AUS) | 53 | 10.0 | Australia | Adelaide | 19 Jan 2003 |
| Gary Brent (ZIM) | 53 | 10.0 | Bangladesh | Mirpur | 9 Dec 2006 |
| Andy Caddick (ENG) | 53 | 10.0 | Netherlands | East London | 16 Feb 2003 |
| Fazl-e-Akbar (PAK) | 53 | 10.0 | England | Leeds | 17 Jun 2001 |
| Suranga Lakmal (SL) | 53 | 10.0 | India | Dharamsala | 10 Dec 2017 |
| Andy McKay (NZ) | 53 | 10.0 | Bangladesh | Dunedin | 8 Feb 2010 |
3 bowlers have bowled the most number of dot balls in an ODI innings in their spell. Curtly Ambrose, Sunil Joshi and Shakib Al Hasan bowled 55 dot balls from their 60 valid deliveries.
Among the top 10 bowlers in this list are India’s Sunil Joshi and England’s James Anderson who bowled 6 maiden overs in their spells. Overall, Phil Simmons and Bishan Singh Bedi have the most maiden overs (8) in an ODI innings.
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Australia’s Sean Abbott has the best economy rate in an innings (minimum 30 balls bowled) in ODI cricket. His economy rate is just 0.20 as he conceded only 1 run in his 5 overs against New Zealand. In that magical new ball spell, Abbott bowled 28 consecutive dot balls before conceding a run.
Shahid Afridi bowled 7022 dot balls in 274 ODI innings – the most dot balls bowled by a bowler in his entire ODI career. Afridi is the only bowler to bowl more than 7000 dot balls.
