R Ashwin (center) in a file photo.
Highlight
- Ashwin leveled with Kapil when he took the wicket of Pathum Nisanka during Sri Lanka’s second match
- After this, Twitcher got his 435th wicket by dismissing Charit Aslanka.
- The great Anil Kumble tops the charts with 619 scalps, which he claimed in 132 matches
Premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin on Sunday became the second-highest wicket-taker for India in the longest format of the game, surpassing the great Kapil Dev’s 434 Test score, who reached the milestone in his 85th match.
The 35-year-old spinner achieved this feat in the ongoing first Test against Sri Lanka. He started the match with 430 scalps and took two wickets in the first innings before adding three more in the second essay to cross Kapil’s mark.
Kapil did this feat in 131 matches. The great Anil Kumble tops the charts with 619 scalps, which he claimed in 132 matches.
Ashwin leveled with Kapil when he took the wicket of Pathum Nisanka during Sri Lanka’s second innings. Twitcher then took his 435th wicket by dismissing Charit Aslanka.
In the first innings, he registered figures of 2/49, helping the hosts take a massive 400-run lead.
Ashwin is the fourth Indian bowler to take more than 400 wickets in Test cricket. Apart from Kapil, he became the ninth-highest Test wicket-taker of all time, surpassing New Zealand great Richard Hadlee (431) and Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath (433).
Only four Indian bowlers – Kumble, Ashwin, Kapil and Harbhajan Singh – have taken more than 400 wickets in Test cricket.
(PTI reports)