Bowlers who improved their best figures the most times

[Bijed]

On the back of the "Which cricketers have obtained a new highest score the most times?" thread, I was wondering about the equivalent question for bowlers - namely, what is the record for the amount of times a bowler has improved their best innings bowling figures. My immediate thought is that it would be someone like Stuart Broad, who started off as a very ordinary test bowler but continually improved over their career (though he's now unlikely to improve his best figures again). I may have completely failed to think of someone very obvious, though, so please do post your suggestions.

I calculate Broad to have improved his best figures 11 times (counting his first bowling innings as an 'improvement').

 

[Furball]

Hah, my immediate thought was 'Broad must be a shout for this'.

Anderson can't have done it that often given he got 5 on debut and took his best career figures in 2008?

 

[Bijed]

Yeah, I had a look at Jimmy and after his debut 5-fer, he got a better 5-fer and then the 7-fer which remains his best.

I'm wondering now if there's a chance it'll be someone totally unexpected in that I think there's an outside chance that a batsman who was a bit of a part-timer and had a decent-length career could have got a few progressively better 0-fers, then a few 1-fers, a 2-fer etc.

 

[Furball]

0-fers don't count.

 

[ankitj]

Nominate Narendra Hirwani for the least. His best was his first innings or second?

 

[Bijed]

0-fers don't count.

Fair enough, never realised that, takes that potentially awkward factor out of the equation, though I'd still find it an interesting statistical exercise to see if it makes a difference if you were to count them.

Seems a little odd now that we've got T20s where you can put in an excellent wicketless performance with the ball.

Nominate Narendra Hirwani for the least. His best was his first innings or second?

His first, with his second being a slightly worse 8-fer. Similar for Dominic Cork, took 7-43 in his 2nd bowling innings and never eclipsed it.

I wonder who has the record for longest career with their best figures in their first match? Utterly trivial statistic, but I like those.

 

[NUFAN]

I was going to work this out one day but I don't like how 6/150 is considered better bowling figures over a 5/32 performance.

 

[Bijed]

I was going to work this out one day but I don't like how 6/150 is considered better bowling figures over a 5/32 performance.

Yeah, that's always bothered me, especially with really extreme examples like Harmison's 7/12 vs Krezja's 8/215. But I guess it's fairly equivalent to a batsman's best innings not necessarily being the one where they got their highest score, and it's not wrong to say that it's more difficult to get 6 wickets than 5, for example.

 

[Furball]

Bert Massie a shout?

 

[Howe_zat]

Broad has 9

1/95, 2/62, 3/54, 8/85, 6/91, 6/46, 7/72, 7/44, 8/15

Bob Willis I think takes the biscuit with 12.

1/1, 3/73, 3/58, 4/118, 4/64, 4/56, 5/61, 5/42, 5/27, 6/53, 7/78, 8/43

can't find better than that from the 300+ wicket club.

Murali 10, Kapil 11

 

[mr_mister]

Warnie had a dire start to his career right

 

[morgieb]

Warnie had a dire start to his career right

Kinda. But he clicked reasonably quickly.

 

[Bijed]

Broad has 9

1/95, 2/62, 3/54, 8/85, 6/91, 6/46, 7/72, 7/44, 8/15

Bob Willis I think takes the biscuit with 12.

1/1, 3/73, 3/58, 4/118, 4/64, 4/56, 5/61, 5/42, 5/27, 6/53, 7/78, 8/43

can't find better than that from the 300+ wicket club.

Murali 10, Kapil 11

Are those from checking statsguru? Problem there if so is that it won't show if someone improved their best figures twice in a match - I think you've got to manually look at their graph on their cricinfo profile, which is how I got my figure of 11 times for Broad. Of course, you may have done this or something equivalent and I'm just wrong. Moot point re Broad since Willis trumps him anyway, but could change Willis', Murali and Kapil's figures.

 

[Furball]

Kinda. But he clicked reasonably quickly.

Warne got his Test best figures in 1993/94 so I'd guess the answer is not him.

 

[Burgey]

Md Amir improved his bank account figures early on too.

 

[indiaholic]

Md Amir improved his bank account figures early on too.

Wasn't Amir paid something like 2500 pounds?

 

[Blocky]

Wasn't Amir paid something like 2500 pounds?

Shh, it doesn't fit the narrative that a young naive teenager was talked into doing something by his captain (Butt) and senior pro (Asif) for next to no monetary gain, but only to gain their approval... and then hung out to dry by his cricketing board and the ICC; doing his time with no complaint and coming back to the game, not once complaining about how **** he's had it.