Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is one of those few players who keep a track of all their stats. While he surely knows what record he is going to smash next, his list of achievements has multiplied so fast that it has become difficult to keep a track of them. Take the last Test against New Zealand for example. He destroyed the Kiwis with figures of 7/59 and restricted them for a paltry score of 153. In the first innings he took 6/81 and overall his 13/140 became his best figures so far.
During the match, he also became the third fastest bowler in the world to take 20 five-wicket hauls. By the end of the game, he has 21 five-wicket hauls and six 10-wicket match hauls. He took 27 wickets in the series and was awarded the seventh Player of the Series award (fourth in a row). He also became the number one bowler in ICC Test rankings. All of that in just one Test.
The 30-year-old from Chennai loves breaking records one after the other. Ashwin made his international debut in 2011 against the West Indies and has gone on to build a reputation of a bowling all-rounder for himself. Ashwin’s figures of 3/81 and 6/47 on debut, helped India win the match. He was awarded the Man of the Match, accomplishing yet another rare feat. In the same series, Ashwin scored his maiden century and took two five-wicket hauls. He was declared the Player of the Series Award for his prowess.
Anil Kumble’s record of being the fastest Indian bowler to take 50 wickets, Erapalli Prasanna’s 100 wickets and Kumble-Prasanna’s joint record of 150 wickets have been shattered by R Ashwin. Kumble’s record of 50 wickets in 10 matches was broken by Ashwin in nine appearances. Prasanna’s 100 wicket record in 20 matches was replaced by Ashwin in 18 games. Ashwin took 29 Tests to break Kumble-Prasanna’s 150 wickets record in 34 encounters.
Recently, Ashwin made Kane Williamson his 200th victim and broke Harbhajan Singh’s record of being the fastest Indian to 200 wickets. While Harbhajan took 46 Tests, Ashwin did it in 37 and became the second fastest in the world to do so. Australia’s Clarrie Grimmett completed the task in 36 appearances. If Ashwin continues to go on at this rate, (as an India I hope he does) he will become the fastest Indian to 250 as well as 300 wickets.
After his exceptional performance against the Kiwis, he was awarded the Player of the Series Award. Ashwin has received 7 Player of the Series Awards, which is the most by an India. The previous record was jointly shared by Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag who had won the title five times.
WATCH: Ashwin’s spell against Sri Lanka
(Video Courtesy: YouTube.com/Sony Six)
