Welcome, I, Aarti, once again welcome you to today’s “The Sports Prince” blog. Today, we will tell you how India’s star off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has surpassed former spinner Anil Kumble. On the opening day of the first Test match against Bangladesh being played in Kanpur, Ashwin took a wicket, making him the highest wicket-taker for India in the Test format in Asia. Ashwin now has 420 wickets in the red-ball format in Asia.
Ashwin Becomes Asia’s Second Most Successful Test Bowler
Although Ashwin has surpassed Anil Kumble, Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan still holds the title of the most successful Test bowler in Asia. Muralitharan holds the record with 612 wickets in Tests on Asian soil, while Ashwin now stands in second place. There’s still a significant gap between Ashwin and Muralitharan. Kumble is in third place with 419 wickets.
Bowlers with the Most Wickets in Asia (Tests)
| Bowler | Country | Wickets |
|---|---|---|
| Muttiah Muralitharan | Sri Lanka | 612 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | India | 420* |
| Anil Kumble | India | 419 |
| Rangana Herath | Sri Lanka | 354 |
| Harbhajan Singh | India | 300 |
What Has Happened Until Now-
Rain Casts a Shadow on the First Day of the Match
Speaking of the match, the Indian team won the toss and decided to bowl first. However, rain affected the opening day, causing a delayed start and the match had to be called off early due to the weather. The toss, which was scheduled for 9 AM, took place at 10 AM instead. Similarly, the match started at 10:30 AM instead of 9:30 AM. By the end of the day’s play, Bangladesh had scored 107 runs for the loss of three wickets in their first innings.
A Captain Chooses to Bowl in Kanpur After 60 Years
In this Test, Indian captain Rohit Sharma opted to bowl first after winning the toss. This is the 24th Test match in Kanpur, and it’s only the second time a captain has chosen to field after winning the toss. The last instance was 60 years ago in 1964 when India made this decision against England. At that time, the Indian captain was Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, who invited England to bat first after winning the toss in Kanpur.
