Ashwin the second fastest 500 wicket taker: Anil Kumble is the only Indian bowler and overall, the fourth to take above 500 test wickets. After great leg-spinner Kumble, veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin became the second Indian bowler and the ninth overall to achieve 500 wickets in Test cricket. He accomplished this feat in just 98 Test matches, and also became the second fastest 500 wicket taker in World test cricket. For him this is a massive career milestone.
Ashwin ended the second Test in Vizag with 499 wickets, just short of one wicket away to achieve this milestone. After Zak Crawley’s dismissal by Ashwin against England during the ongoing Test match at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot on Friday, he reached this milestone, became the second Indian bowler to got 500 wickets. Ashwin was then swarmed by his team-mates to congratulate him on achieving the monumental feat.
He joins a prestigious group of bowlers as the ninth in Test history to surpass the 500-wicket mark, following in the footsteps of Anil Kumble as India’s only representatives. Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, Anil Kumble, and Nathan Lyon are the other spinners ahead of him in the list of highest wicket-takers in Test history.
Since his Test debut in November 2011, Ashwin has been India’s key bowler, particularly dominating at home grounds, where he has claimed 347 of his 500 wickets.
“From Chennai to the cricketing cosmos, @ashwinravi99’s journey to 500 Test wickets is a saga of grit, guile, and unrivaled skill. A monumental achievement that cements his legacy in the annals of cricketing history. Bravo, Ashwin!” wrote veteran India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik on ‘X’.
“500 Test wickets for a one-in-a-million bowler! In AshWIN the SpinNER, there was always a WINNER. 500 wickets is a huge milestone in Test cricket. Congratulations, Champion!” wrote legendary India batter Sachin Tendulkar on ‘X’.
Ashwin the second fastest 500 wicket taker
Top 10 wicket-takers in Test Cricket history
Muttiah Muralitharan (Sri Lanka) – 800
Shane Warne (Australia) – 708
James Anderson (England) – 695
Anil Kumble (India) – 619
Stuart Broad (England) – 604
Glenn McGrath (Australia) – 563
Courtney Walsh (West Indies) – 519
Nathan Lyon (Australia) – 517
Ravichandran Ashwin (India) – 500
Dale Steyn (South Africa) – 439
Ashwin accomplished this feat in 98 Test matches, making him the second-quickest in Test history to reach the milestone after Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lanka’s legendary off-spinner, who did so in 87 Tests. Other than Ashwin and Muttiah Muralitharan all of the other seven bowlers took more than 100 Test matches to achieve the same feat.
Ashwin has recorded 34 five-wicket hauls and eight 10-wicket match hauls in his Test career.
Ashwin’s teammate Ravindra Jadeja had humorously remarked that it was Ashwin’s “destiny” to achieve the milestone at Jadeja’s home ground in Rajkot.
“I am very happy for him, I have been playing with him for years,”
“I thought he would get it in the first test match, but it’s okay, it is destiny that he will get it here in my hometown.”
James Anderson, Nathan Lyon, and Ashwin are the only active bowlers with more than 400 wickets in Test cricket.
Since his Test debut against the West Indies in New Delhi in November 2011, Ashwin has emerged as India’s primary strike bowler in Test matches, especially on home soil, where he has claimed 347 of his 500 wickets.
Out of Ashwin’s 500 wickets, 277 were taken through catches, with 12 of them being caught and bowled dismissals. Additionally, he has secured 110 wickets through LBWs, 100 through bowled dismissals, and 13 through stumpings. Significant career milestone achieved by Ravichandran Ashwin in the Rajkot Test.
Top 5 wicket takers for India in test cricket
Anil Kumble – 619 – 132 matches
Ravichandran Ashwin – 500 – 98 matches
Kapil Dev – 434 – 131 matches
Harbhajan Singh – 417 – 103 matches
Zaheer Khan – 311 – 92 matches
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