Happy Birthday Ashish Nehra: In recent years, many fast bowlers have made their mark but one certain player who stands out and really deserves a lot of credit for Team India’s stellar performance is Ashish Nehra. Born in Delhi on April 29, 1979, he represented the country in all formats of the game. The long lean left-arm seamer with side-on action, could trouble the best of the wicket with his pace, accuracy and subtle variations, despite an injured career.
IPL Full Coverage , Schedule , result , orange cap , purple cap
After a successful domestic debut in the 1997–98 season, his first taste of international cricket came in a one-off Test match against Sri Lanka at Nagpur in 1999. He made his ODI debut against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2001 and was instrumental in helping Team India win Tests outside the subcontinent for the first time in 15 years.
He was in and out of the national team due to fitness issues, but was part of the Indian team in two World Cup campaigns (2013, 2011), two Asia Cups and three ICC Champions Trophy. The left-arm pacer played just 17 Test matches, taking 44 wickets, while he took 157 wickets in 120 ODIs. He also featured in 27 T20Is and took 34 wickets.
He has also been particularly effective in the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which he has represented five different teams, taking 106 of 88 wickets. The veteran pacer announced his retirement from all forms of cricket in late 2017.
As Nehra celebrates his big day, here are some of his best performances:
6/23 vs England (2003)
In a 2003 World Cup match against England in Durban, with just 250 defending on the board, Javagal Srinath and Zaheer Khan had already done the initial damage by taking two quick wickets. Nehra took six wickets and conceded just 23 runs in his 10 overs. Not only did he record career-best bowling figures, but his impressive spell also helped India win a thumping 82-run victory over England.
4/35 vs Sri Lanka (2003)
Nehra’s singing continued in the 2003 World Cup. Batting first, India scored 292 runs against Sri Lanka in Johannesburg. Defending a challenging total, India had to use just three bowlers to clean the islanders. Srinath built in the roads, while Nehra did a great job cleaning the tail.
6/59 vs Sri Lanka (2005)
In the final match of the Indian Oil Cup between the Asian giants in Colombo, Nehra recorded the second best figure of his career. He picked up six wickets on a track where other bowlers struggled. However, India missed out on 18 runs chasing the target of 281 runs.
4/40 vs Sri Lanka (2010)
During the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka in Dambulla, Nehra set another impressive record against his favorite batsmen. Defending just 268 runs on the board, he tore up the Sri Lankan batting line-up and ensured India won the title.
4/47 vs New Zealand
New Zealand won the match against Sri Lanka in the tri-series at Dambulla by a margin of 200 runs. Although Nehra’s bowling was the only saving grace for the Indian side, he took four wickets to restrict the Kiwis to 288, when they looked dangerously close to go up to 320. In reply, India were bowled out for just 88 runs.
Get all the latest updates cricket news, cricket pictures, cricket videos, IPL 2022 Live Updates And cricket score Here