Which T20 World Cup edition recorded most maiden overs?
The recently-concluded ICC T20 World Cup made saw quite a few low-scoring encounters. The wickets, especially in the USA leg, made life difficult for the batters. Notably, the New York venue had an average first-innings score of 107. Therefore, the 2024 T20 World Cup recorded as many as 44 maiden overs, the most in an edition. Here are the editions with most maiden overs.
T20 World Cup 2024: 44 maidens
As mentioned, a total of 44 maiden overs were bowled in the 2024 T20 World Cup, the most by miles. Interestingly, no other edition has even registered more than 25 maiden overs. As per ESPNcricinfo, 640 wickets fell across 1832.3 overs by 265 players in the 2024 T20 World Cup. The tally included 17 four-wicket hauls and two fifers.
T20 World Cup 2012: 21 maidens
The 2012 T20 World Cup edition hosted by Sri Lanka saw similar pitches, where spinners and medium-pacers made merry. Mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis was the highest wicket-taker of the tournament, having recorded 15 scalps. Notably, 2012 remains the only other T20 WC edition that witnessed more than 20 maiden overs (21). A total of 975.2 overs were bowled.
2021 and 2022: 17 maidens
The 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cup editions recorded 17 maiden overs each. Over 1,500 overs were bowled in each of these tournaments (2021: 1635.4 and 2022: 1582.2). The 2021 edition hosted by the UAE recorded 14 hauls of four-plus wickets (two fifers). Meanwhile, the 2022 tournament held Down Under saw nine such hauls.
T20 World Cup 2007: 15 maidens
The inaugural T20 World Cup (2007) remains the only other edition with 15+ maiden overs (15). It saw as many as 986.1 overs by 152 bowlers. The tally included 10 four-wicket hauls.
