With the fall of Charith Asalanka’s wicket in Sri Lanka’s second innings of the Mohali Test on Sunday, Ashwin Ravichandran became India’s second-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.
Asalanka’s wicket was Ashwin’s 435th, taking him past legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev’s tally of 434. Ashwin now only trails former leg-spinner Anil Kumble’s 619 wickets.
The 35-year-old from Chennai reached his tally much faster than Dev did. Ashwin is currently playing his 85th Test for India, while Dev took 127 Tests to reach his mark, which was once the world record.
Ashwin is now ninth in the overall list of most wickets taken in Test cricket. He trails the likes of Muthiah Muralidaran (800), Shane Warne (708), and James Anderson (640) – the top 3.
However, he is third among currently active players, behind just Anderson and Stuart Broad (537).
Most wickets for India in men's Test cricket
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 5 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Kumble | 1990-2008 | 132 | 236 | 40850 | 18355 | 619 | 10/74 | 14/149 | 29.65 | 2.69 | 65.9 | 35 | 8 |
| R Ashwin | 2011-2022 | 85* | 160 | 22875 | 10572 | 435 | 7/59 | 13/140 | 24.30 | 2.77 | 52.5 | 30 | 7 |
| N Kapil Dev | 1978-1994 | 131 | 227 | 27740 | 12867 | 434 | 9/83 | 11/146 | 29.64 | 2.78 | 63.9 | 23 | 2 |
| Harbhajan Singh | 1998-2015 | 103 | 190 | 28580 | 13537 | 417 | 8/84 | 15/217 | 32.46 | 2.84 | 68.5 | 25 | 5 |
| I Sharma | 2007-2021 | 105 | 188 | 19160 | 10078 | 311 | 7/74 | 10/108 | 32.40 | 3.15 | 61.6 | 11 | 1 |
| Z Khan | 2000-2014 | 92 | 165 | 18785 | 10247 | 311 | 7/87 | 10/149 | 32.94 | 3.27 | 60.4 | 11 | 1 |
| BS Bedi | 1966-1979 | 67 | 118 | 21364 | 7637 | 266 | 7/98 | 10/194 | 28.71 | 2.14 | 80.3 | 14 | 1 |
| BS Chandrasekhar | 1964-1979 | 58 | 97 | 15963 | 7199 | 242 | 8/79 | 12/104 | 29.74 | 2.70 | 65.9 | 16 | 2 |
| RA Jadeja | 2012-2022 | 58* | 110 | 14459 | 5838 | 240 | 7/48 | 10/154 | 24.32 | 2.42 | 60.2 | 10 | 1 |
| J Srinath | 1991-2002 | 67 | 121 | 15104 | 7196 | 236 | 8/86 | 13/132 | 30.49 | 2.85 | 64.0 | 10 | 1 |
| Mohammed Shami | 2013-2022 | 58* | 110 | 10515 | 5721 | 211 | 6/56 | 9/118 | 27.11 | 3.26 | 49.8 | 6 | 0 |
Most wickets in men's Test cricket
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 5 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M Muralitharan (ICC/SL) | 1992-2010 | 133 | 230 | 44039 | 18180 | 800 | 9/51 | 16/220 | 22.72 | 2.47 | 55.0 | 67 | 22 |
| SK Warne (AUS) | 1992-2007 | 145 | 273 | 40705 | 17995 | 708 | 8/71 | 12/128 | 25.41 | 2.65 | 57.4 | 37 | 10 |
| JM Anderson (ENG) | 2003-2022 | 169 | 314 | 36396 | 17014 | 640 | 7/42 | 11/71 | 26.58 | 2.80 | 56.8 | 31 | 3 |
| A Kumble (INDIA) | 1990-2008 | 132 | 236 | 40850 | 18355 | 619 | 10/74 | 14/149 | 29.65 | 2.69 | 65.9 | 35 | 8 |
| GD McGrath (AUS) | 1993-2007 | 124 | 243 | 29248 | 12186 | 563 | 8/24 | 10/27 | 21.64 | 2.49 | 51.9 | 29 | 3 |
| SCJ Broad (ENG) | 2007-2022 | 152 | 280 | 30575 | 14932 | 537 | 8/15 | 11/121 | 27.80 | 2.93 | 56.9 | 19 | 3 |
| CA Walsh (WI) | 1984-2001 | 132 | 242 | 30019 | 12688 | 519 | 7/37 | 13/55 | 24.44 | 2.53 | 57.8 | 22 | 3 |
| DW Steyn (SA) | 2004-2019 | 93 | 171 | 18608 | 10077 | 439 | 7/51 | 11/60 | 22.95 | 3.24 | 42.3 | 26 | 5 |
| R Ashwin (INDIA) | 2011-2022 | 85* | 160 | 22871 | 10572 | 435 | 7/59 | 13/140 | 24.30 | 2.77 | 52.5 | 30 | 7 |
| N Kapil Dev (INDIA) | 1978-1994 | 131 | 227 | 27740 | 12867 | 434 | 9/83 | 11/146 | 29.64 | 2.78 | 63.9 |
