Ashwin on cusp of breaking Kumble’s spectacular record vs AUS; India star can also equal Harbhajan's feat in 4th Test
Spin wizard Ravichandran Ashwin is all set to break Anil Kumble's record against Australia in the 4th Test on Thursday. Ashwin can also join Harbhajan Singh on an elite list.
In a match where veteran Australian spinner Nathan Lyon turned the tie on its head with his eight-wicket haul, spin wizard Ravichandran Ashwin only managed to take 4 wickets as Australia ended up recording a famous win over Rohit Sharma's men in Indore. Spin maverick Ashwin had sparked Australia's batting collapse in the 1st innings by teaming up with veteran pacer Umesh Yadav.
Ashwin and Umesh's bowling heroics had forced the visitors to lose as many as six wickets for just 11 runs in their first essay at Indore. The Indian all-rounder also kickstarted India's attack by dismissing an on-song Usman Khawaja on the second ball of Australia's 2nd innings. However, Ashwin's bowling heroics went in vain as Australia picked up a rare win at the Holkar Cricket Stadium.
With the four-match series on the line in Ahmedabad, a couple of records will also be up for grabs for Ashwin. The spin maverick is only 10 wickets away from completing 700 wickets in international cricket for Team India. The 36-year-old has taken 467 wickets in the longest format. Ashwin has picked up 151 scalps in One Day Internationals (ODIs) for the two-time world champions.
The senior bowler has 72 wickets to his name in T20Is. Ashwin will become the third Indian bowler to take 700 wickets in international cricket if the spinner ends up taking 10 wickets in the series decider at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Legendary spinners Anil Kumble (956) and Harbhajan Singh (711) are the only two bowlers from India who have achieved the rare feat in international cricket.
Interestingly, Ashwin is also 4 wickets away from equalling the incredible wicket tally of Anil Kumble against Australia in the longest format. Former India skipper Kumble bagged 111 wickets against the Baggy Greens in his illustrious Test career. Kumble is the all-time leading wicket-taker for India in Test cricket. The spin legend picked up 619 wickets in 132 Test matches for the Asian giants. Earlier, India off-spinner Ashwin lost six rating points although the premier bowler remained the joint top-ranked Test bowler with England's James Anderson on the ICC rankings.
