Cricket World Cup 2015: Top Run-Scorers, Bowlers Ahead of Quarter-Finals

There have been some exemplary individual displays at the 2015 Cricket World Cup to date, but the challenge facing those star men moving into the quarter-final stages of the competition is maintaining those immaculate levels during the knockout matches.

The top run-scorers at this tournament have been particularly impressive, with the serene consistency of Kumar Sangakkara, the peerless magnificence of AB de Villiers and the unrelentingly aggressive hitting of Glenn Maxwell all thrilling in equal measures.

But there have been some understated displays with the ball too. Mitchell Starc has been the standout man with his forensically accurate brand of left-arm fast bowling, while New Zealand's Tim Southee and Trent Boult have terrorised the opposition batsmen with flawless displays with the new ball.

Here’s a look at who's sitting on top in a variety of individual classifications on the cusp of the quarter-final and a closer examination of some stellar performers with both bat and ball.

Top 10 Gross Run-Scorers

Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

Player	Team	Runs
Kumar Sangakkara	Sri Lanka	496
Brendan Taylor	Zimbabwe	433
AB de Villiers	South Africa	417
Tillakaratne Dilshan	Sri Lanka	395
Mahmudullah	Bangladesh	344
Sean Williams	Zimbabwe	339
Shikhar Dhawan	India	337
Misbah-ul-Haq	Pakistan	316
Shaiman Anwar	UAE	311
Hashim Amla	South Africa	307

All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.   

Top 10 Batting Averages

James Elsby/Associated Press

Player	Team	Average
Sarfraz Ahmed	Pakistan	150.00
Kumar Sangakkara	Sri Lanka	124.00
Mahmudullah	Bangladesh	86.00
AB de Villiers	South Africa	83.40
MS Dhoni	India	83.00
Tillakaratne Dilshan	Sri Lanka	79.00
Virat Kohli	India	75.25
Brendan Taylor	Zimbabwe	72.16
Suresh Raina	India	70.66
David Miller	South Africa	68.75

All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.    

Top 10 Strike Rates

Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

Player	Team	Runs	SR
Dinesh Chandimal	Sri Lanka	52	216.66
Farhaan Behardien	South Africa	74	205.55
Glenn Maxwell	Australia	257	190.37
Brendon McCullum	New Zealand	257	187.59
Andre Russell	West Indies	84	186.66
Kusal Perera	Sri Lanka	24	184.61
James Faulkner	Australia	23	176.92
Tawanda Mupariwa	Zimbabwe	19	172.72
Tim Southee	New Zealand	12	171.42
Brad Haddin	Australia	119	163.01

All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.  

Top 10 Wicket-Takers

Paul Kane/Getty Images

Player	Team	Wickets
Mitchell Starc	Australia	16
Mohammed Shami	India	15
Trent Boult	New Zealand	15
Josh Davey	Scotland	15
Jerome Taylor	West Indies	14
Wahab Riaz	Pakistan	14
Daniel Vettori	New Zealand	13
Morne Morkel	South Africa	13
Tim Southee	New Zealand	13
Ravichandran Ashwin	India	12

All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.  

Top 10 Bowling Figures

Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images

Player	Team	Runs	Wickets
Tim Southee	New Zealand	33	7
Mitchell Starc	Australia	28	6
Trent Boult	New Zealand	27	5
Mitchell Marsh	Australia	33	5
Imran Tahir	South Africa	45	5
Sohail Khan	Pakistan	55	5
Steven Finn	England	71	5
Mitchell Starc	Australia	14	4
Daniel Vettori	New Zealand	18	4
Kyle Abbott	South Africa	21	4

All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.   

Top 10 Economy Rates

Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

Player	Team	Runs	Wickets	Econ
Michael Clarke	Australia	14	1	2.80
Daniel Vettori	New Zealand	178	13	3.21
James Tredwell	England	25	1	3.57
Jeevan Mendis	Sri Lanka	18	2	3.60
Mirwais Ashraf	Afghanistan	63	2	3.66
Mitchell Starc	Australia	136	16	3.67
Bhuvneshwar Kumar	India	19	1	3.80
Dwayne Smith	West Indies	27	1	3.85
Ravi Bopara	England	31	2	3.87
Sohaib Maqsood	Pakistan	24	1	4.00

All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.   

Standout Performers

Theron Kirkman/Associated Press

Kumar Sangakkara and AB de Villiers Show Their Quality

The exploits of Sangakkara have been joyous to watch at this tournament. The veteran batsman has walked out to the crease with his team in various situations, but in each of the last four matches, he’s provided a wonderful steadying influence to the batting effort before accelerating with patented distinction.

He became the first man ever to score four centuries in four successive one-day international matches after his latest sublime knock against Scotland.

Former Australia star Adam Gilchrist paid tribute to Sangakkara’s amazing feat:

"

I scored 4 100's in a row once...shame it was on the golf course! @KumarSanga2 congrats on 500+ WC record and runs,runs,runs #legend

— Adam Gilchrist (@gilly381) March 11, 2015"

Trailing the Sri Lanka star is De Villiers, and the South Africa skipper has been equally as encapsulating in his efforts. Batting further down the order, De Villiers has a little bit more license to go after the bowlers, and as he illustrated with an awesome unbeaten 162 against West Indies earlier in the tournament, he’s a player who can pile on the runs late in the innings.

As noted by Freddie Wilde of ESPN Cricinfo, the South African has such a broad array of strokes that it must be difficult for the opposition to know where to bowl against him:

"

AB de Villiers: Strong Zone. #CWC15 #SAvUAE #SA #UAE pic.twitter.com/oJ8mXvINRE

— Freddie Wilde (@fwildecricket) March 12, 2015"

Sadly, the upcoming match between Sri Lanka and South Africa in the quarter-finals means we’ll be losing one of these fine players. But hopefully, the incentive of a spot in the last four of the competition will prompt both of these fascinating players to turn in magnificent performances.

Mitchell Starc a Class Apart with the Ball

The exploits of the aforementioned duo as well as a host of other stunning individual displays with the bat have ensured that batsmen have had much of the spotlight trained upon them in the early stages of the tournament. But there have been some admirable bowling efforts too, most notably from the Aussie left-armer Starc.

He’s taken 16 wickets for his side so far, and his performance against New Zealand was simply staggering, a sensational spell of bowling hauling the Baggy Greens back from the brink, only to fall agonisingly short of victory.

But aside from his strike bowling, what’s also impressive about Starc is his ability to strangle the opposition’s run rate. As noted by OptaJim, only one other bowler at the tournament is more efficient at stopping the batsmen from scoring off his deliveries:

"

68.6 - Mohammed Shami (68.6%) has the highest dot ball percentage at #CWC15, 50+ balls bowled. M. Starc (67.5%) has 2nd highest. Respected.

— OptaJim (@OptaJim) March 14, 2015"

When batsmen are looking to whack the ball to all parts, bogging them down and subsequently inducing rash decisions out of frustration is often the best way to take wickets. It’s a facet of bowling Starc excels at. Plus, he is more than adept at throwing in the occasional short delivery or toe-crushing yorker.

If he can preserve this kind of consistency throughout the knockout stages, Australia have a brilliant chance of sampling World Cup glory for the fifth time in their history. Starc’s ability to restrict and take wickets relieves the pressure on this quality Australia batting lineup ,and when players such David Warner, Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell can play with freedom, the opposition are in trouble.