Xavier Bartlett has played only four ODIs in his short career, but has already made a significant impact.
Australia have an interesting approach to white-ball cricket. They rest the big three – Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Mitchell Starc – for the bilateral series and give fringe players a go before recalling them for the main events. Several players have had opportunities since the 2023 World Cup, and Xavier Bartlett is one of them.
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He made his ODI debut against the West Indies last year on the back of a terrific Big Bash League (BBL) 2023/24. He was the leading wicket-taker and instrumental in Brisbane Heat’s title-winning campaign. The pacer has always been a quality operator, and that tournament cleared his way for the national selection.
Xavier Bartlett has played only four ODIs in his short career, but has already made a significant impact with the ball. He has 12 wickets at an average of 10.66 and a strike rate of 15.58 in four innings, including a best of 4/17. Among all bowlers with at least 10 scalps since his debut, he has the best average and third-best strike rate.
Despite featuring in only four ODIs, Bartlett is already the third-leading wicket-taker for Australia in this timeframe. He has taken at least two wickets in all innings. His economy rate of 4.10 stands as the best among all Australian bowlers with a minimum of 10 overs.
Even historically, Bartlett’s average is the second-best in ODI history among bowlers with at least 10 wickets. His strike rate is comfortably the best within the same sample size. Obviously, his numbers will worsen once he plays more cricket, but his current data reveal he has had one of the best starts in this format.
A major chunk of his success has come with the new ball, as Bartlett has found significant movement early on and troubled batters. Eight of his 10 ODI wickets have come in the powerplay at a marvellous average of 7.87 and a strike rate of 14.25. Additionally, he has conceded only 3.31 runs per over in this phase.
Of bowlers with at least five powerplay wickets, Bartlett has the best average and strike rate since his ODI debut. Overall, he has the second-best average with a filter of more than five powerplay wickets. His heroics are visible in the dismissals he has taken in his short career.
50% of his total wickets have been of openers, and Bartlett has dismissed 75% of batters between scores of 0-9. That suggests he doesn’t give the opponent time to settle and strikes immediately. No other pacer has been as effective as him since last year, even with a sample size.
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One significant reason for Bartlett’s immense success with the new ball has been his consistent ability to bowl good-length deliveries. He bowls his deliveries in one area and allows them to move in the air or off the deck. A whopping 88.59% of his powerplay balls have been on length, with 6.14% back of a length and 5.26% half volleys.
Among pacers from top 12 teams with at least 15 powerplay overs, only Mohammed Shami has bowled a higher percentage of length balls (93.33) than him since 2024. Bartlett has drawn 39.47% false shots in this phase. This has been possible due to his immaculate lengths, which have worked well on helpful Australian wickets.
There’s still room for traditional new-ball bowling in the 50-over cricket, and Bartlett has proved it in a short four-match run. He has mostly played T20 cricket since his rise and has performed immensely well in a short span. But he seems tailor-made for ODI cricket, where his skills have rightly come to the fore as he can plan for batters with an extra over or two.
This might be his best format, irrespective of how he has performed in T20s. His bowling attributes will be mighty effective on South African decks in the 2027 World Cup. Obviously, he might not get all the games once the big three are available, but his skills are good enough to be in the squad.
