Ravichandran Ashwin surpasses Anil Kumble to become India's greatest bowler in Asia

Indian all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin is on a record-breaking spree in the ongoing two-match Test series against Bangladesh. After shattering multiple records with his all-round show in the first Test at his home ground, MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Ashwin continued his trend of breaking past milestones in the second and final Test in Kanpur.

The Indian cricket team is currently facing the Bangladesh cricket team in the second and final Test at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur. The game faced a delay in the start due to rain in Kanpur. Well, as expected, batting is not looking easy at Green Park, as the Indian bowlers continue to trouble Bangladesh.

Ravichandran Ashwin continues to break Test records against Bangladesh

In the first session, Indian pacer Akash Deep dismissed both Bangladesh openers Zakir Hasan for a duck and Shadman Islam for 24 runs off 36 balls. Then, Team India looked a little bit out of the track, searching for the third wicket in the second session, and Ashwin did the job for the hosts.

The Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin sent the dangerous-looking Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto for 31 runs off 57 balls. During his stay, Shanto smoked six boundaries and stitched a solid partnership of 45+ runs with Mominul Haque to rebuild Bangladesh’s innings after early setbacks in India.

Well, on the fifth ball of the 29th over, Ashwin delivered the in-drifter that kept coming in with the round-the-wicket angle, and Shanto was caught in front of the stumps but opted to review the decision. Shanto dived forward to defend but misjudged the line, resulting in the ball striking him in front of off-stump, showing it was a clear LBW out.

The replays began, and UltraEdge showed a flat line, indicating no inside edge. When the ball-tracking came into play, it confirmed that the ball crashed into the middle stump. Resulting in the Bangladesh team losing the review, and Shanto had to walk back to the dugout.

Even if the Bangladesh skipper had edged the ball, it would have been caught by Shubman Gill at second slip. Shanto had started off well and was becoming a threat for India, but Ashwin's clever bowling led to his dismissal.

Ravichandran Ashwin surpasses Anil Kumble to become Asia's second-highest Test wicket-taker

With his first wicket in the ongoing Kanpur Test, the Indian star Ravichandran Ashwin achieved a couple of remarkable milestones in the longest format of the game. By dismissing Shanto, Ashwin has etched his name in history by surpassing Anil Kumble to become the second-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket in Asia.

Ravichandran Ashwin also became the Indian bowler with the most Test wickets in Asia after surpassing Kumble in the elite list. Now, Ravichandran Ashwin has set a new record for the most wickets taken by an Indian bowler in Test cricket in Asia. Earlier, Kumble held that record with 419 scalps in Asia. Now, the Indian off-spinner has 420 Test wickets to his name in the Asian conditions.

Additionally, Ashwin is now only trailing behind the Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan, who is leading the list with an astounding 612 wickets to his name. With this feat, Ashwin cemented his status as one of the greatest spinners in cricket history and his dominance in Asian conditions.

Most Test wickets in Asia

612 - M Muralitharan
420 - Ravi Ashwin*
419 - Anil Kumble
354 - Rangana Herath
300 - Harbhajan Singh#INDvsBAN

— JaffaJester 😎 (@Jhakasjaffa) September 27, 2024

HISTORY CREATED BY ASHWIN. 🐐

- Ashwin now has the most wickets by an Indian in Asia in Test history. pic.twitter.com/wwNhc3UEt3

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) September 27, 2024