WI vs IND | Ravichandran Ashwin Soars Past Anil Kumble For a Unique Record
Ashwin celebrates Chanderpaul's wicket on Day 1 (Twitter)
Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin dismantled West Indies within the opening day of the first Test in Dominica. The seasoned campaigner collected five wickets to register his 33rd five-fer in Tests, as the hosts were bundled out for just 150 in their first innings.
Notably, Ashwin also claimed a unique Test record for India by going past former Indian captain Anil Kumble in an interesting statistical milestone.
Ashwin engineers India’s domination with unique records
West Indies captain and opening batter Kraigg Brathwaite won the toss and opted to bat first on Day 1 of the first Test. The cricketer formed a cautious 31-run opening stand with Tagenarine Chanderpaul, who became the hosts’ first casualty of the day courtesy of some sharp turn from Ashwin.
The legendary spinner cleaned up a clueless Chanderpaul, and his wicket triggered a colossal batting collapse, restricting West Indies’ response to just 150. Ashwin claimed five wickets in the innings, and he was assisted by his spin teammate Ravindra Jadeja with a three-fer.
Remarkably for Ashwin, the 36-year-old attained a huge Test record for India. By castling Chanderpaul’s stumps, he went past Anil Kumble to take the highest number of wickets for India through bowled in Tests.
Kumble, who played 132 Tests in his career, had batters bowled 94 times. Ashwin now has 95 bowled wickets to his name and might extend his tally to 100 in the ongoing series.
Interestingly, the 93-Test veteran also became the first Indian to dismiss a father-son duo in the format. West Indies legendary batter Shivnarine Chanderpaul, father of the team’s current opener Tagenarine, was one of the earliest Test victims of Ashwin’s career.
By stumps on Day 1, the Indian team reached 80-0 and are trailing the hosts by another 70 runs. The match is the first in a two-game series, which also launches India’s 2023-25 WTC cycle.