Legendary Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who won the Player of the Series award in the India-Bangladesh Test series earlier this month, can break multiple records during the three-match series against New Zealand.
After whitewashing Bangladesh in Test and T20I series, the India men’s cricket team will face Bangladesh in a three-match Test series. The last home series of 2024 for the Indian team is set to start on Wednesday (October 16). The series opener is scheduled to take place at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, and the next two Tests will be played in Pune (October 24-28) and Mumbai (November 1-5) respectively.
India would like to come up with a super show against the Kiwis as well and whitewash them in front of home fans to boost chances of securing a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at the Lord’s next year.
During the three-match series against the Black Caps, star Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will have a chance to break multiple bowling records.
Here’s a look at five records Ashwin can break during the India-New Zealand Test series:
Most wickets in WTC: Ashwin has picked up 185 wickets in 37 WTC matches played so far for Team India. If he manages to take at least three more wickets, then he will break Nathan Lyon’s record and become the leading wicket-taker in WTC history. Australia’s legendary spinner has 187 wickets to his name in 43 WTC matches.
200 wickets in WTC: If Ashwin manages to dismiss a minimum of 15 Kiwi batters in the upcoming three Tests, then he will create history and become the first bowler in the world to complete a double century of dismissals in the World Test Championship.
2nd most five-wicket hauls in Tests: Ashwin has 37 five-wicket hauls to his name in 102 Tests played so far. He will break Shane Warne’s record and become the sole owner of No. 2 position in the list of bowlers with the most five-wicket hauls in Tests if he takes at least one fifer against the Tom Latham-led side.
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7th leading wicket-taker in Tests: Ashwin has dismissed 527 batters so far in 102 Tests for India. The 38-year-old spinner needs four more wickets to break Lyon’s record of 530 wickets and become the seventh leading wicket-taker in Test cricket.
Most Wickets in India: Ashwin has managed to take a total of 466 wickets in 128 international matches played across formats in India. If he finishes the New Zealand series with 11 wickets, then he will break Anil Kumble’s record of 476 international wickets on matches played in Indian soil.
The world No. 2 Test bowler will also break legendary Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan’s world record of most Player of the Series awards in Tests if he bags the top prize in the India-New Zealand series. As of now, both Ashwin and Muralitharan have won 11 Player of the Series awards each.
