Stats: Bowlers fastest to 300 Test wickets

Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was coming into the Sri Lanka Test series after quite a break having spent time away from the game since the Test series on the tour of the Island country. He made the best use of the gap and reworked his bowling, he introduced different loadings, delivery angles and release points to his already wide repertoire of variations. In the second Test, he picked up 8 wickets in the game to achieve his 300th Test wicket with that of Lahiru Gamage.

The opening match of the series at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata had all in for the pacers and thus the skipper required just 10 overs of service from the tweakers and they went wicketless. Coming into Nagpur, the conditions were different, though it was not an outright turning track both Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were at the top of their game on the very first morning. The offie picked 4 wickets in the first innings and ensured the visitors were bowled out inside 80 overs.

He has been on quite a streak, in his 54-Test career, he has been breaking records held by legends to become the fastest to various milestones. With his 8-wicket match haul at the VCA Stadium, he went past Dennis Lillee’s record to become the fastest bowler in the history of the game to pick 300 Test wickets. While the Aussie legend took 56 matches, Ashwin got there having played two matches fewer.

With an excellent average of 25, he has 26 five-wicket hauls and seven 10-wicket hauls to his name. While 300 was considered a huge landmark in a bowlers career, Ashwin has managed to get through very young in his career. And that sets him up for something unbelievable by the time he plays 100 Tests and later as he calls it time on his career.

Here is the list of bowlers fastest to 300 wickets in Test cricket:

(Stats updated till 27th November, 2017)