Is this latest speed kid on the block? Well Sri Lankan fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana is certainly one to watch out for. His action is quite similar to that of Lasith Malinga, but what has got the cricket world talking about him is the speed at which he is bowling.
Apparently Pathirana has broken Shoaib Akhtar’s record of bowling the fastest delivery during an international game. In the ongoing Under-19 World Cup during the game against India, the Sri Lankan youngster bowled a delivery which the speed gun clocked at 175kmph.
In the 2003 World Cup during the Pakistan-England game, one of Akhtar’s deliveries was clocked at 161.3kmph. Till now, it has been considered to be the fastest ball ever to be bowled. Australians Brett Lee and Shaun Tait had come close to Akhtar’s record reaching speeds of 161.1kmph.
The question now is whether Pathirana’s delivery will be considered the fastest.
Pathirana achieved the feat in the fourth over of the Indian innings while bowling to Yashasvi Jaiswal. Thankfully, the Indian batsman did not have to play the ball as it was way down the leg side and was declared a wide.
See link: https://twitter.com/CricketVideos16/status/1219158878056636418
ICC however, has till now said anything on the delivery. One of the reasons for that can be that it was not a legal delivery and hence will not be considered in the record books. However, Pathirana now has become a hot topic of discussion among all the followers of the game.
Legal or illegal, Pathirana has a fair action (Shoaib’s action was debatable) and hence, he is being talked about in exciting manner within the cricket fraternity. Sri Lanka will certainly hope that he continues to bowl with such speed as it will augur well for the future.
PNN & Agencies