by Bowling in T10 cricket is as much about discipline as skill. You get 12 balls.
The batter knows exactly what you’re going to try to do. And the crowd wants boundaries.
So when you look at the bowlers with most wickets in Abu Dhabi T10 League history, you’re looking at players who figured something out that most bowlers haven’t.
They found repeatable ways to take wickets in a format where that should be nearly impossible.
The Abu Dhabi T10 League has been running since December 2017. Eight franchises compete each season under the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB).
The league pulls in elite players from across the world, which makes these bowling records even more meaningful.
Bowlers with Most Wickets in Abu Dhabi T10 League History
Below is the complete all-time list, updated through November 2025.
Bowlers with Most Wickets in Abu Dhabi T10 League History
| Pos | Player | Country | Span | Mat | Overs | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Ave | Econ | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dwayne Bravo | West Indies | 2017–2023 | 55 | 94.1 | 1067 | 39 | 4/16 | 27.35 | 11.33 | 14.48 |
| 2 | Naveen-ul-Haq | Afghanistan | 2021–2024 | 35 | 70.0 | 707 | 35 | 3/7 | 20.20 | 10.10 | 12.00 |
| 3 | Qais Ahmad | Afghanistan | 2018–2024 | 39 | 61.5 | 609 | 34 | 3/8 | 17.91 | 9.84 | 10.91 |
| 4 | Andre Russell | West Indies | 2018–2023 | 45 | 60.0 | 685 | 32 | 3/17 | 21.40 | 11.41 | 11.25 |
| 5 | Fazalhaq Farooqi | Afghanistan | 2021–2024 | 35 | 68.0 | 585 | 31 | 3/5 | 18.87 | 8.60 | 13.16 |
| 6 | Wahab Riaz | Pakistan | 2017–2022 | 39 | 74.4 | 729 | 31 | 3/4 | 23.51 | 9.76 | 14.45 |
| 7 | Tymal Mills | England | 2018–2024 | 26 | 43.2 | 403 | 30 | 3/9 | 13.43 | 9.30 | 8.66 |
| 8 | Karim Janat | Afghanistan | 2018–2024 | 44 | 63.3 | 635 | 29 | 3/9 | 21.89 | 10.00 | 13.13 |
| 9 | Rayad Emrit | West Indies | 2017–2022 | 33 | 62.2 | 732 | 28 | 2/16 | 26.14 | 11.74 | 13.35 |
Last updated: November 1, 2025.
What Each Bowler Brings to T10?
1. Dwayne Bravo (West Indies) — 39 Wickets
No bowler in Abu Dhabi T10 League history has taken more wickets than Dwayne Bravo.
His 39 wickets from 55 matches across 2017 to 2023 are the record. Best figures: 4/16.
What sets Bravo apart is not pace. It never has been.
He takes wickets through deception: the knuckleball that arrives two metres later than expected, the off-cutter that grips and skids, the slower yorker that batters half-volley into the hands of mid-off.
In T10, where batters come in swinging, those tricks work consistently.
2. Naveen-ul-Haq (Afghanistan) — 35 Wickets
Naveen-ul-Haq played 35 matches and took 35 wickets, every match contributing to his tally.
Economy: 10.10. Strike rate: 12.00. Best figures: 3/7.
His sharpness at the top of the order is the key.
He uses pace and late movement to beat batters before they’ve read the length, picking up wickets when teams are most exposed.
3. Qais Ahmad (Afghanistan) — 34 Wickets
Qais Ahmad is an anomaly on this list.
A leg-spinner with 34 wickets, an average of 17.91, and an economy of 9.84 across 39 T10 matches.
Those are numbers that belong in red-ball cricket, not a format built for hitting.
The googly is his best weapon. It comes out of the hand looking like a leg-break, turns the other way, and beats the edge.
In T10, where batters often aim to hit early in the over, that unpredictability is worth a lot.
4. Andre Russell (West Indies) — 32 Wickets
Andre Russell took 32 wickets from 45 matches.
Best figures: 3/17. Economy: 11.41.
Russell is primarily a batter in the T10 context, but teams pick him to bowl precisely because he can execute the full-length delivery and the wide yorker under pressure.
He takes wickets in moments when other bowlers give runs.
5. Fazalhaq Farooqi (Afghanistan) — 31 Wickets
Fazalhaq Farooqi has the best economy rate on this entire list: 8.60 across 35 matches.
Best figures: 3/5. He joined the league in 2021 and immediately made an impact.
Left-arm swing with real pace is a combination that batters dislike facing at any level.
In T10, where the powerplay is often the only time teams get full fielding restrictions, Farooqi is most dangerous precisely when he’s most needed.
6. Wahab Riaz (Pakistan) — 31 Wickets
Wahab Riaz also has 31 wickets, taken across four different franchises between 2017 and 2022.
His best figures of 3/4 are one of the most dominant short-spell returns in the league’s history. Economy: 9.76.
Wahab brought left-arm hostility to the Abu Dhabi T10 from its very first season.
That longevity across six seasons with four teams shows how consistently he was valued.
7. Tymal Mills (England) — 30 Wickets
The most efficient bowler on this list by strike rate.
Tymal Mills took 30 wickets from just 26 matches with a strike rate of 8.66. That is a wicket roughly every nine balls.
His economy of 9.30 is second only to Farooqi. Mills rarely bowls a loose delivery.
His express pace, disguised slower ball, and accurate yorker make him a match-winner in every short-format tournament he enters.
8. Karim Janat (Afghanistan) — 29 Wickets
Karim Janat is the most versatile Afghan bowler on the list.
He has played for four different franchises and taken 29 wickets from 44 matches between 2018 and 2024.
His economy of 10.00 and best figures of 3/9 reflect a bowler who keeps the game tight.
He is not a wicket-taker at the expense of runs, but a steady operator who makes scoring difficult and creates opportunities for others.
9. Rayad Emrit (West Indies) — 28 Wickets
Rayad Emrit completes the list with 28 wickets from 33 matches across three franchises (2017 to 2022). Economy: 11.74.
Emrit was one of the Caribbean players who helped build the league’s identity in its early seasons.
His experience in T20 franchise cricket made him adaptable across conditions and match situations.
Three Numbers That Tell the Real Story
Look past the wicket totals, and three stat lines stand out.
- Fazalhaq Farooqi: economy of 8.60. In a format where 10+ per over is the norm, conceding fewer than 9 per over while taking 31 wickets is remarkable.
- Tymal Mills: strike rate of 8.66. He needed fewer deliveries per wicket than any other bowler in the top nine. That is the definition of bowling efficiency.
- Qais Ahmad: average of 17.91. For a spinner in T10, that average puts him in a category almost no other slow bowler in this format occupies.
FAQs
- Q: Who holds the record for most wickets in Abu Dhabi T10 League history?
Dwayne Bravo of the West Indies holds the record with 39 wickets from 55 matches between 2017 and 2023. His best innings figures were 4/16.
- Q: What is Fazalhaq Farooqi’s economy rate in the Abu Dhabi T10 League?
Farooqi has an economy rate of 8.60, the best among all top wicket-takers in the league’s history.
- Q: Is there a spinner among the top wicket-takers in Abu Dhabi T10 League history?
Yes. Qais Ahmad, the Afghan leg-spinner, has 34 wickets from 39 matches. He is the only specialist spinner in the top nine all-time wicket-takers.
- Q: How does Tymal Mills compare to other bowlers on the list?
Mills has the best bowling strike rate in the top nine at 8.66, meaning he took a wicket every 9 balls on average. He did that in just 26 matches, fewer than anyone else near the top.
- Q: Which country has the most bowlers in the Abu Dhabi T10 top wicket-takers list?
Afghanistan has four bowlers in the top nine: Naveen-ul-Haq (35 wickets), Qais Ahmad (34), Fazalhaq Farooqi (31), and Karim Janat (29).
- Q: How many overs can a bowler bowl in an Abu Dhabi T10 League match?
In T10 cricket, a match lasts 10 overs per side. Bowlers are generally limited to two overs each, giving them a maximum of 12 deliveries per game.
Conclusion:
Dwayne Bravo’s 39 wickets remain the standard in Abu Dhabi T10 League history.
He built that record through six seasons of smart, varied bowling against world-class batters.
The gap between him and the next group — Naveen, Qais, Russell — is real but not permanent.
Farooqi and Mills are the two most efficient active bowlers on the list.
If either commits to the league for another few seasons, the record could move.
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