Ravichandran Ashwin’s 100th Test: What the career numbers have to say

Ravichandran Ashwin is all set to represent India in his 100th Test when they play England in the fifth and final match of the ongoing series at Dharamshala on Thursday.

R Ashwin will be the 14th player from the country to play 100 Test matches and the oldest at 37 years and 172 days to do so. The India vs England 5th Test starts on Wednesday.

“The 100th Test match probably means a lot to my dad, it means a lot to my wife and my mom. My daughters are more excited than I am. For me, it’s just a number,” Ashwin said.

Most Test matches for Indian cricket team

Player	Matches
Sachin Tendulkar	200
Rahul Dravid	163
VVS Laxman	134
Anil Kumble	132
Kapil Dev	131
Sunil Gavaskar	125
Dilip Vengsarkar	116
Sourav Ganguly	113
Virat Kohli	113
Ishant Sharma	105
Harbhajan Singh	103
Cheteshwar Pujara	103
Virender Sehwag	103
Ravichandran Ashwin	100*

Born in Madras (now Chennai) in 1986, Ashwin has gone on to become one of the finest cricketing talents produced by the nation.

The off-spinner debuted for the Indian Test team in 2011 against the West Indies and won the Player of the Match award and Player of the Series awards, marking the onset of an illustrious career.

Since then, Ashwin has taken 507 wickets from 99 Tests at an average of 23.91, the third-best for any bowler with more than 500 wickets.

“(It's a) big achievement for any player to play 100 Tests. It is a big milestone,” Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma said on the eve of the upcoming Test. “He has been a match-winner for us. What he has done for us, no praise is enough… It is rare to have players like him”

Most wickets in Test cricket

Player	Wickets	Matches	BBI	Average	SR	RPO
M Muralitharan (SL)	800	133	9/51	22.72	55.04	2.47
SK Warne (AUS)	708	145	8/71	25.41	57.49	2.65
JM Anderson (ENG)	698	186	7/42	26.51	56.99	2.79
A Kumble (IND)	619	132	10/74	29.65	65.99	2.69
SCJ Broad (ENG)	604	167	8/15	27.68	55.79	2.97
GD McGrath (AUS)	563	124	8/24	21.64	51.95	2.49
NM Lyon (AUS)	527	128	8/50	30.35	61.95	2.93
CA Walsh (WI)	519	132	7/37	24.44	57.84	2.53
R Ashwin (IND)	507	99	7/59	23.91	51.3	2.79
DW Steyn (SA)	439	93	7/51	22.95	42.38	3.24

Ashwin is currently ninth on the list of highest wicket-takers in Test cricket and has the best strike rate of 51.3, among them. He is the second Indian after Anil Kumble to take 500 wickets in Test matches.

R Ashwin, the accidental spinner

Ashwin, by his own admission, was an accidental spinner, and more of a batter in age-group cricket for Tamil Nadu. He made his First-Class debut for Tamil Nadu in December 2006.

The stint with Chennai Super Kings in Indian Premier League where Ashwin helped them win back-to-back titles in 2010 and 2011 under MS Dhoni helped him attain an Indian cap. In the IPL, Ashwin now plays for Rajasthan Royals.

Ravichandran Ashwin was the sixth fastest player to reach 100 wickets in Test cricket, dismissing Darren Sammy in his 18th match in November 2013 in Mumbai. Incidentally, this was Sachin Tendulkar’s final Test match of his career.

New Zealand’s Kane Williamson was Ashwin’s 200th wicket, which came in his 37th Test at Kanpur in 2016, the third fastest to do so. Ashwin was the fastest to reach 300 scalps, eclipsing Dennis Lillee of Australia, taking just 54 Tests to reach the milestone

Ashwin finished as the second fastest to 400 and 500 wickets behind Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan.

Ashwin’s 100th Test: Records in sight

Ashwin’s 100th Test match can also fetch him several records. He has 10 Player of the Series awards from 41, one short of Muralitharan, who was part of 61 assignments.

The Indian cricketer has 35 five-wicket hauls and is one short of surpassing Anil Kumble’s tally.

Most five-wicket hauls in Test cricket

Player	5-fers	Matches
Muttiah Muralitharan	67	133
Shane Warne	37	145
Sir Richard Hadlee	36	86
Ravichandran Ashwin	35	99
Anil Kumble	35	132

Both Ashwin and Kumble have eight 10-wicket hauls and another one at Dharamshala will take Ashwin to joint-third alongside Richard Hadlee and Rangana Herath.

Ashwin is also the highest wicket-taker in Tests held in India with 354 wickets going past Anil Kumble in the last match.

It’s not just Ashwin’s bowling that has garnered headlines. He has been a handy all-rounder with vital contributions with the bat.

Ashwin has scored a little over 3,300 runs at an average of just above 26 with five centuries. He is currently second in ICC’s latest list of all-rounders and bowlers in Test cricket.