2020 has been a strange year thanks in no small part to the coronavirus pandemic. The virus has thrown into disarray the idea of what 'normal life' is. Sport in general has not been exempt from that; playing matches behind closed doors while also having to live in bio-secure bubbles to ensure there is no additional Covid-19 cases has been the new normal for cricketers whenever they have had to play matches, whether internationally or in domestic leagues. As such, the fact that any matches could be played at all is in itself massive. T20I cricket too was disrupted due to the pandemic.

Here we look at the top 10 wicket takers in ODI cricket for the year 2020:

Adam Zampa - The Australian leg-spinner has had a stellar year with the ball and it is absolutely no surprise to see him atop the wicket-taking charts in ODI cricket. The young Australian took a massive 27 wickets in 13 matches at an economy rate of 5 and a strike rate of 28.4. Australia will hope his excellent form carries on into the new year.

Alzarri Joseph - The young West Indian bowler has had to cope with plenty of pressure since his early days in cricket thanks to his ability but he continues to grow in confidence and ability. He played only 6 ODIs in 2020 but finished with 18 wickets at an economy rate of 4.41 and a strike rate of 20.0.

Josh Hazlewood - The Australian pacer, often compared to Glenn McGrath and seen as someone who is primarily a red-ball specialist, has proven time and again that he's no slouch in limited-overs cricket either. In 10 ODIs this year, he took 16 wickets at an economy rate of 5 and a strike rate of 36.9.

Pat Cummins - Hazlewood's pace bowling partner Cummins has proven himself a top performer across formats and it is not hard to see why he remains first choice for Australia. 11 ODIs in 2020 yielded a total of 15 wickets - just one less than Hazlewood - at an economy rate of 5.74 and a strike rate of 41.2.

Bilal Khan - One of two players from Oman to make it onto this list, the 32-year old Bilal had a quietly impressive year with the white ball, albeit against slightly lower quality opposition. Still, 14 wickets at an economy of 4.28 and a strike rate of 22.7 deserves praise any which way.

Zeeshan Maqsood - Zeeshan is the other Oman international to be a part of this list. The left-arm orthodox bowler took 13 wickets - one less than his compatriot Bilal - but at a far superior economy rate of 3.79. A strike rate of 24.0 is also something to be proud of.

Lungi Ngidi - The South African pacer topped the wicket taking charts as far as T20I bowling was concerned in 2020 and his ODI numbers are also pretty solid. In just 4 ODIs, he has taken 12 wickets - meaning he's averaging 3 wickets a game, which is mind boggling. His economy rate of 5/67 and strike rate of 17 also show just how dangerous an operator he is.

Adil Rashid - The English leg-spinner has been in and out of the Test side in recent times but remains a dependable performer in ODIs and T20Is. 2020 was no different for Rashid; in the 7 matches he played, he took 12 wickets at an economy rate of 5.37 and a strike rate of 33.6.

Mohammed Shami - The only Indian to make it to the list, Shami also took 12 wickets, just like the two men before him on his list. However, his wickets came in 6 games and while his economy rate of 7.03 is slightly higher than others on this list, his strike rate of 27.9 shows his ability to be among the wickets.

Mitchell Starc - Rounding off the list is the the third member of Australia's famed attacking trio. Left-arm seamer Starc had a relatively quiet year by his standards but he still managed to take a grand total of 12 wickets at an economy rate of 6.28 and a strike rate of 51.7.