Ravichandran Ashwin brought an end to Mitchell Starc's cameo early on Day 2 of the first Test between India and Australia in Pune as the hosts bowled the visitors out for 260 in the first innings.
This was Ashwin's third wicket of the innings and his 64th in cricket's longest format in this home season. As a result Ashwin broke Kapil Dev's long standing record of most Test wickets taken in a season by an Indian bowler, which the 'Haryana Hurricane' had set in the 1979/80 season. Ashwin was the highest wicket taker in the three match Test series against New Zealand with 27 scalps. The spin wizard repeated his feat against England in the five-match series picking up 28 wickets.
A six-wicket haul against Bangladesh in the one-off Test was backed up with a three-wicket show in the first innings against Australia, which put the record breaking bowler ahead of arguably India's biggest bowling match-winner Kapil Dev. This achievement is just the latest in a series for Ashwin, who is enjoying a purple patch in Test cricket which has seen him become the fastest to reach 250 Test wickets too. Ashwin's rise has coincided with an extended purple patch for Indian captain Virat Kohli with the bat and the duo's form is the primary reason why Team India has reached the number 1 ranking in Test cricket.
