New Delhi: Ravichandran Ashwin made history on Friday by becoming only the second Indian cricketer to secure 500 Test wickets in international cricket. Ashwin achieved this milestone on Day 2 of the ongoing second Test against England in Rajkot. He reached the landmark by dismissing Zak Crawley (15) during the third session.
Ashwin had been stuck on 499 wickets after managing to pick up just three wickets in the second Test at Visakhapatnam, where India won by 106 runs to level the series at 1-1. He is following in the footsteps of Anil Kumble, who was the first Indian to achieve the feat, finishing his career with 619 wickets in 132 Tests.
In Test cricket history, Ashwin becomes the ninth bowler to reach the 500-wicket mark, and he joins an exclusive club of spinners, including Mutthiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, Anil Kumble, and Nathan Lyon. Among this group, Ashwin is the second-fastest to reach the milestone, accomplishing it in 97 Tests, just behind Sri Lankan legend Muralitharan, who achieved the feat in 87 Tests.
Before Ashwin's achievement, only eight bowlers had entered the elite 500-wicket club, including Mutthiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, Anil Kumble, Nathan Lyon, Courtney Walsh, Glenn McGrath, James Anderson, and Stuart Broad. Ashwin has also contributed significantly with the bat, scoring five centuries, and he has taken 34 five-wicket-hauls and eight 10-wicket-hauls in his career.
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