Shane Warne explains how Anil Kumble picked so many wickets despite ‘not spinning the ball a long way’
Muralitharan tops the list with 800 wickets while Warne takes up the second spot with 708 scalps. Kumble completes the illustrious top thee with 619 wickets in Test cricket.
Former Australia cricketer Shane Warne heaped praise on former India spinner, captain and coach Anil Kumble as he referred to his Indian counterpart as a ‘super competitor’. He also explained how Kumble managed to pick so many wickets despite not spinning the ball a lot as compared to other tweakers in the game.
With no international or domestic cricket going on due to coronavirus pandemic, former and current cricket stars are keeping themselves busy by engaging with fans on social media. Warne hosted a live session on popular site Instagram to speak about Kumble and decoded his style of bowling.
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“For a guy who did not spin the ball a long way, one of the reasons why he got so many wickets is because he got bounce and because of his skill,” Warne said about Kumble in his Instagram live video.
“He was a super competitor, it was his brain, he thought about the game. Even though he is a gentleman, and he is quiet, he is a super competitor. He is hungry, love calling him a friend. Always did so well.”
No praise is high enough for Kumble, who served Indian cricket for almost 15 years. He didn’t spin the ball like Warne or Muttiah Muralitharan but his unique abilities put him third on the list of highest wicket-takers ever in the longest format.
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Muralitharan tops the list with 800 wickets while Warne takes up the second spot with 708 scalps. Kumble completes the illustrious top thee with 619 wickets in Test cricket.
No Indian is even close to Kumble’s career tally as former all-rounder Kapil Dev takes up the second spot with 434 wickets while Harbhajan Singh comes third with 417 wickets.
There is also another illustrious list where Kumble has his name etched upon forever. He became only the second cricketer in the history of the sport to pick 10 wickets in an innings. Jim Laker did it against England’s rivals Australia in 1956 while Kumble repeated the feat in 1999 against India’s arch-rivals Pakistan in Delhi.