Fastest Ball in IPL: Top 10 Quickest Deliveries in History

20/03/2024

The IPL, also known as the Indian Premier League, is one of the world's top cricket leagues. Every year, fans witness the performances of players from various nations competing for the IPL trophy. The bowlers get an opportunity to showcase their talents as the top batsmen will be facing them in the tournament. Every year, a large number of young bowlers who have only played in regional tournaments come up and shock the top batsmen with their unplayable deliveries. Here, we will look at some of the fastest balls in the IPL so far. It has been more than 16 years since the IPL matches were played, and the bowlers have risen to the top of the list of fastest deliveries in IPL history. The next edition of the IPL is also coming up in a few weeks, and fans are excited to see if another bowler will be added to the roster. With the help of our list you can place bets on IPL more successfully. Currently, the list has been prepared after taking all the bowlers who have been bowling fast and hence these players have been making things interesting for the viewers.

Top 10 fastest balls in IPL history

Let us take a look at the top 10 fastest balls in IPL history. Many bowlers in the IPL have created their own terror with these fast-paced balls. The bowling speed that the bowlers delivered in a specific edition of the IPL is the most important factor in determining their rankings. So, the fastest balls in IPL history are listed below. The list was created considering how quickly the bowlers have been bowling, so only those players who have performed well in the game have been included.

Rank	Player Name	Teams played for	Speed (in kmph)
1.	Shaun Tait	Rajasthan Royals	157.71
2.	Lockie Ferguson	Kolkata Knight Riders, Gujarat Lions	157.3
3.	Umran Malik	Sunrisers Hyderabad	157
4.	Anrich Nortje	Delhi Capitals, Kolkata Knight Riders	156.22
5.	Umran Malik	Sunrisers Hyderabad	156
6.	Anrich Nortje	Delhi Capitals, Kolkata Knight Riders	155.1
7.	Umran Malik	Sunrisers Hyderabad	154.8
8.	Anrich Nortje	Delhi Capitals, Kolkata Knight Riders	154.7
9.	Dale Steyn	Royal Challengers Bangalore, Gujarat Lions, Deccan Chargers, Sunrisers Hyderabad	154.40
10.	Kagiso Rabada	Gujarat Lions, Chennai Super Kings, Lucknow Super Giants	154.23

1. Shaun Tait: Highest speed ball in IPL

When it comes to the fastest bowlers in the IPL, Shaun Tait comes at the top of the list. Although he just played a few IPL seasons, Shaun Tait's fastest ball in IPL is recorded to be 157.71 kmph. This is the highest bowling speed ever recorded in IPL to date, and it was recorded at a time when it has just been a few years since IPL had started. Shaun Tait played for the team of Rajasthan Royals in the four IPL seasons which he had played to date, and he ensured that all the other batsmen remained scared when the captain of the team handed him the bowl. Shaun Tait constantly bowled at speeds between 140-150 kmph, and a few times, his deliveries even went above this range. When Rajasthan Royals were having their match against the team Delhi Daredevils, Aaron Finch got to face Shaun Tait. This was during the 2011 edition of the IPL, and Shaun Tait bowled an impressive delivery of 157.71 kmph, which was truly unplayable for Aaron Finch. Shaun Tait has been the fastest bowler in both International cricket and IPL. He has been the definition of a perfect fast bowler who has been playing well and hence this makes him to be included in this list at the first position.

2. Lockie Ferguson: An overseas player is the fastest bowler in IPL

Lockie Ferguson is another international player who loves to play in the IPL season. He is a fast-paced bowler for the New Zealand team, and in the recent IPL edition (IPL 2022), he bowled an impressive delivery with a speed of 157.3 kmph. This delivery was awesome, and the batsmen had no idea about the same. It even helped Lockie Ferguson to make it to the list of fastest balls in IPL history, and he was even awarded for having the fastest delivery in the IPL 2022 season. The Kolkata Knight Riders were impressed by his bowling performance, due to which the team retained Lockie Ferguson for the current IPL edition. Many experts think that Lockie Ferguson might be able to break the record of Shaun Tait. Ferguson has bowled many deliveries above 150 kmph, but none of them came even close to this delivery which he made against the team Rajasthan Royals.

3. Umran Malik: A young player with the fastest bowl in IPL

Umran Malik has made it to the list of current fastest bowlers in India. He showed his talent for the first time in the IPL matches where he plays for the team Sunrisers Hyderabad. Umran Malik made his IPL debut for the team in the year 2022, and his impressive bowling skills made the team retain Umran Malik for the next IPL edition. In the 2022 season of IPL, the team Sunrisers Hyderabad stepped against the team Delhi Capitals where Rovman Powell got to face Umran Malik. Fortunately, Umran Malik was able to take his wicket by bowling an awesome delivery of 157 kph, which was unpredictable for Rovman Powell. This also made Umran Malik the only Indian bowler to make it to the list of fastest bowlers in IPL history. He also finished 2nd in the tournament for the fastest bowl after Lockie Ferguson.

4. Anrich Nortje: The fastest bowler in the 2020 IPL Season

Anrich Nortje is a South African fast-paced bowler who plays in the IPL tournament for the team Delhi Capitals. His bowling action is great, and his deliveries are enough to put a set batsman in trouble, due to which he is known for his fast-paced balls in the IPL tournament. During the 2020 IPL season, the batsmen were scared to face Anrich Nortje as he constantly bowled over 150 kmph, which was truly unplayable for the opponent batsmen. It is also said that 2020 was the prime year of Anrich Nortje. In a match against the team Rajasthan Royals, Anrich Nortje bowled a delivery of 156.22 kmph to Jos Buttler. However, Buttler used the page of the bowl and scored a boundary with a scoop shot. But Nortje was able to make it to the list of fastest balls in IPL history.

5. Umran Malik: Second time the fastest bowler in IPL

This was the second time when Umran Malik made it to the list of fastest bowlers in IPL history. The fans and the coaches were impressed as he constantly bowled deliveries in the same match above the speed of 150 kmph. Umran Malik has made it to the list for the 2nd time in the only IPL season that he played which is a huge achievement for this young player. In the match against the team Delhi Capitals, Umran Malik bowled a delivery with a speed of 156 kmph, which was awesome. He also helped the team Sunrisers Hyderabad to restrict Delhi Capitals at a low score in that game.

6. Anrich Nortje: IPL Highest speed ball for the 2nd time

Anrich Nortje also made it 2nd time to the list of fastest IPL bowlers of all-time when he played for the team Delhi Capitals. In the 2020 IPL season, which was also his prime year, the team Delhi Capitals was having a match against the team Rajasthan Royals. Anrich Nortje bowled a wonderful spell in this match, and one of his deliveries went at the speed of 155.1 kmph, which even helped him to be on the list of fastest bowlers in the IPL 2020 season for the 2nd time. It was also said by many experts that during the year 2020, Anrich Nortje was the deadliest fast-paced bowler as there was no other bowler who could give him competition.

7. Umran Malik: Indian young talent with the highest bowling speed in IPL

In his first IPL season, Umran Malik made it for the third time to the list of fastest deliveries in IPL history which is a good achievement for the young talent. When Umran Malik was playing for the team Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2022 season, he was in the squad for their match against Delhi Capitals. In this match, Umran Malik was able to control the top batsmen of Delhi with his impressive bowling skills and also took some massive wickets which helped Sunrisers Hyderabad to maintain the game's momentum. Umran Malik bowled an impressive delivery of 154.8 km/h in that match which helped him to make it to the list for the third time. Having a look at his performance, it can be said that he will be a great asset to the Indian Cricket Team in the future.

8. Anrich Nortje: Fastest Delivery in IPL for the third time

Anrich Nortje is the only South African

fast-paced bowler who got his name in the list of fastest balls in IPL history for the third time. The 2020 IPL season was probably the best one he ever had, and the coaches saw his performance improving with every match. Due to this reason, Anrich Nortje made it to the list of fastest IPL deliveries of all time for the third time in his IPL prime year. The match against Rajasthan Royals was the time when he made it to the record books of IPL for the third time. In this match, he bowled a 154.7 km h delivery to the team Rajasthan Royals which the batsmen had no idea about. This made the team Rajasthan Royals struggle a lot with the bat when Anrich Nortje was given the bowl. Anrich Nortje is someone who will always be on his toes to bowl fast and hence will make sure that he performs well enough to give his team a win.

9. Dale Steyn: The Steyn Gun is also the IPL fastest ball

Dale Steyn is known to be the greatest South African bowler of all time, and he is also known for his fast-paced bowling skills in the IPL matches. However, Dale Steyn was not able to play much in the current IPL seasons due to a lot of injuries coming back to back. But during his prime year, Dale Steyn was a nightmare for the batsmen who would be having their match against Deccan Chargers. In the year 2012, Dale Steyn played for the team Deccan Chargers, and he bowled an impressive delivery of 154.40 kmph, which helped him to make it to the list of fastest IPL deliveries of all time. Dale Steyn also made it to the list of leading wicket-takers in the same season and finished 6th on the list by the end of the tournament. Just a decade ago, the batsmen were scared to face Dale Steyn's deliveries whether it was IPL or International matches.

10. Kagiso Rabada: IPL's fastest delivery in recent years

Kagiso Rabada is known to be one of the greatest bowlers in all formats for the current generation. He is another South African fast-paced bowler who made it to the list of fastest bowlers in IPL history. This clearly shows that South African bowlers have more potential when it comes to high-speed deliveries. Kagiso Rabada had the fastest IPL deliveries in the year 2019 with an impressive speed of 154.23 kmph. In the same IPL season, he was able to take a total of 25 wickets and was among the top bowlers of the tournament. Later in the IPL 2020 season, Rabada took a total of 30 wickets throughout which helped him to win the Purple Cap in the tournament. Rabada has been a bowler who knows how to perform well and hence this makes him an athlete who will always try to perform well for his team.