fastest bowler ever?

[shane gower]

.438 seconds from the time it left Thompson’s hand to reaching the bat that’s lightning fast flem

 

[JBMAC]

One name not here is Malcolm Marshall. Having played both with and against Thommo I think he was the quickest but did not always know where the ball was going to go. Another in contention would be Wes Hall. and i faced him in the nets and he was more that sharpish

 

[aussie tragic]

I think I'll trust Barry Richards and Dennis Lillee who said without a doubt that Thommo was fastest ever

 

[OverratedSanity]

Gotta be Shoaib. Spells like these where there wasnt any extravagant movement and he simply beat players with sheer pace repeatedly were incredible to watch. None of the pre-1990s bowlers look truly express to me apart from Thomson , and I dont think even he looks quite as quick.

 

[aussie tragic]

None of the pre-1990s bowlers look truly express to me apart from Thomson , and I dont think even he looks quite as quick.

Depends if you're looking at Thommo pre or post shoulder injury. Thommo looked nothing special post injury.

 

[harsh.ag]

Thommo pre-injury. Akhtar faster for my money.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Definitely Thomson. Of more modern bowlers probably Shoaib. I'd put Tait in there but not sure he played enough at the top level to properly qualify.

 

[Arachnodouche]

Gotta be Shoaib. Spells like these where there wasnt any extravagant movement and he simply beat players with sheer pace repeatedly were incredible to watch. None of the pre-1990s bowlers look truly express to me apart from Thomson , and I dont think even he looks quite as quick.

Yeah that game in Sri Lanka against Aus where he went on a tear and bowled Gilchrist...I really can't imagine a cricket ball being bowled faster than that, speed meters be damned. It was so quick it almost had a foreshortening effect on the wicket. Mind you, this wasn't the pure athlete Shoaib of his first three years on the scene, he was getting to be more brute force by then, but still scary quick.

 

[RossTaylorsBox]

Thompson would hit the pitch then the sight screen on the full on a regular basis he was quicker than lee

Pretty useless bowler if he's regularly giving away 7 wides.

 

[stephen]

Thommo pre-injury. Akhtar faster for my money.

Look at where Marsh was taking those balls. If nothing else Thomson got crazy amounts of lift, even off a length. But it's a bit silly to imply he wasn't ridiculously quick. Even if he was fractionally slower than Ahktar, his action ensured he was perceived as faster by the batsman.

 

[honestbharani]

Even if he was fractionally slower than Ahktar, his action ensured he was perceived as faster by the batsman.

That is just an assumption here by you, given no two batsmen have faced both these guys. And if anything, I think Shoaib's long run up and his busy action will make him seem quicker than Thommo IMO.

 

[trundler]

Both had that slingy javelin throw thing going for them. Definitely harder to pick than Lee and Holding. Marshall's quick arm must've been a nightmare too.

 

[Daemon]

Anyone who's definitively putting one of Thommo/Akhtar over the other is talking **** imo. As if you can look at clips from different angles and judge a difference of 5kph or whatever it is you think the difference is. Doesn't even factor in how fast bowlers are not always bowling at the same speeds throughout a test match let alone over the years.

But then again since the point of this thread is to speculate I'll lean towards the guy who was recorded as being consistently scary quick.

 

[Migara]

What annoys me about experts when they're asked is that they'll mention the blokes they faced. Benaud will say Tyson, Richards will say Thommo etc. I've seen enough of Holding and Thommo to say I think it's just Thommo. There was a story that he once played on the Perth ground, bowled a wild bouncer that flew over everybody's head, and it hit the white board without bouncing! Apparently it scared people.

You can watch clips of Tyson on TV... but the quality of footage doesn't indicate enough.

Jafra Archer manage to hit the off bail and send the ball over the boundary without bouncing. That was at 89mph. So no need even to be 90+ to do it if the conditions are good enough.

 

[Migara]

There was a little segment on the cricket show earlier this summer about a speed contest they had back in the 1970's in the nets at Perth, they got the fastest 7 or 8 bowlers of that era n lined em up in front of a speed gun for an over each I think it was.

I dont know how reliable the speedo was but I remember Thompson won it but his fastest delivery was only recorded in the high 140's ...and noboddy else was really close to him.
It seems pretty unreliable given that it wasnt a match situation and they werent given a whole lot of deliveries...but still...That would imply that if that was anywhere near accurate then Lee...Shoaib...Donald...Bond were at their respective peaks significantly quicker than the fastest of yesteryear.

The reason for the speed discrepency was that Thommo bowled yorkers and full tosses (which was not his norm), while others bowled shorter stuff. Some one must have told how to register higher speeds on the gun!

 

[Migara]

Fastest was Mohammed Zahid. Even Akthar admits him to be a yard quicker. Hitting 145-150k with a broken back, shows what man have been before the injury.

 

[Daemon]

Fastest was Mohammed Zahid. Even Akthar admits him to be a yard quicker. Hitting 145-150k with a broken back, shows what man have been before the injury.

Love how his Cricinfo bio reads like one from Pakpassion


"Mohammad Zahid is another new lethal fast bowler from Punjab thus keeping alive the Province's tradition of producing fast bowlers. He is said to be a genuine fast bowler produced after a long period of time. He took 11 wkts in his debut test against New Zealand and became the only Pakistani to have taken 10 wkts or more on his debut. Although he still needs some improvement in his line and length, his bowling is really devastating and can tear a batting side into pieces. He picked up a back injury in the tour to Sri Lanka and after his back operation has not yet made his return to the world of cricket. All Pakistan cricket fans hope it wont be long before he comes back to the Pakistan side to strengthen its already formidable bowling attack. (Waheed Bajwa , Jan 1998)"

 

[Migara]

Here is Zahid post injury. Even after the injury he was as quick as Akthar. The way ball climbs on Mark Taylor on placid Pakistani track, gives away how pacy is is the man.

 

[honestbharani]

I think it was literally a Pakpassion poster who wrote it for them... They have just not bothered changing it. Its like the Wikipedia entries for random south Indian movies which suddenly proclaim "Robert De Niro admitted he could not have performed this role better than Kamalhaasan"

 

[smash84]

Yeah that game in Sri Lanka against Aus where he went on a tear and bowled Gilchrist...I really can't imagine a cricket ball being bowled faster than that, speed meters be damned. It was so quick it almost had a foreshortening effect on the wicket. Mind you, this wasn't the pure athlete Shoaib of his first three years on the scene, he was getting to be more brute force by then, but still scary quick.

That spell against an ATG batting lineup was just incredible. Searing pace with reverse swing. Just incredible.