India Cricket has delivered finest bowlers in international cricket history, cementing their name as the highest wicket taker in India, be it in the Test, T20I, or ODI format. With the unique technique from Anil Kumble, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kapil Dev have helped India win various titles.
10 Highest Wicket Taker in India All Formats
On this note, we have listed the all-time 10 best Indian bowlers of all time in international cricket history.
Player | Matches | Wickets | Average (Approx.) | Best Bowling |
Anil Kumble | 401 | 953 | 30.06 | 10/74 |
Ravichandran Ashwin | 287 | 765 | 25.8 | 7/59 |
Harbhajan Singh | 365 | 707 | 32.59 | 8/84 |
Kapil Dev | 356 | 687 | 28.83 | 9/83 |
Ravindra Jadeja | 366 | 627 | 29.3 | 7/42 |
Zaheer Khan | 303 | 597 | 31.48 | 7/87 |
Javagal Srinath | 296 | 551 | 29.11 | 8/86 |
Jasprit Bumrah | 220 | 480 | 20.49 | 6/19 |
Mohammed Shami | 197 | 462 | 26.1 | 7/57 |
Ishant Sharma | 199 | 434 | 32.35 | 7/74 |
From the legendary names like Anil Kumble, Kapil Dev, to the players who are still paving the path to be the greatest bowlers in history like Jadeja and Bumrah, here are some of the highest wicket taker in India across all formats.
Anil Kumble
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 132 | 40,850 | 619 | 29.65 | 10/74 |
ODI | 271 | 14,496 | 337 | 30.89 | 6/12 |
Anil Kumble is the highest wicket taker in India, having played numerous matches. He has played 132 and 271 Test and ODI matches, respectively, with 619 and 337 wickets.
No bowler won India more Test matches than Anil Kumble. He is regarded as one of greatest bowlers in cricket history. With the bowling averages of 29.65 and 30.89 in two formats, he is the highest wicket taker in India.
Ravichandran Ashwin
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 106 | 27,138 | 537 | 23.95 | 7/59 |
ODI | 116 | 6,141 | 156 | 33.2 | 4/25 |
T20I | 65 | 1,452 | 72 | 23.22 | 4/8 |
Ravichandran Ashwin is one of the best Indian bowlers of all time, who is known for his smart spin and changes. His consistency, bowling intelligence, and match-winning skills, curated with an average of not more than 34 in all formats, have earned him great value to the team.
His total wickets in the Test, ODI, and T20I have been 537, 156, and 72, respectively, which makes him one of the highest wicket taker in India. With 11 Man of the Series under his belt, he was also the fastest bowler in the history to reach 300 Test wickets in terms of number of innings.
Harbhajan Singh
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 103 | 28,580 | 417 | 32.46 | 8/84 |
ODI | 236 | 12,479 | 269 | 33.35 | 5/31 |
T20I | 28 | 612 | 25 | 25.32 | 4/12 |
Harbhajan Singh, commonly known as Bhajji, is one of the finest Indian bowlers of all time and a spin master. He has one of the most wickets for India in all formats as he has 417 Test, 269 ODI, and 25 T20I wickets.
Harbhajan has been instrumental in the Indian victories and is one of the highest wicket taker in India, especially in international cricket. With bowling averages of 32.46, 33.35, and 25.32 across the formats, his spin record as one of the best Indian spinners makes him eligible to be included in the list of most consistent bowlers in India.
Kapil Dev
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 131 | 27,740 | 434 | 29.64 | 9/83 |
ODI | 225 | 11,202 | 253 | 27.45 | 5/43 |
Kapil Dev, the legendary all-rounder, is one of the greatest Indian bowlers of all time and the highest wicket taker in India in his time. He has recorded 434 Test and 253 ODI wickets, which made a significant contribution to the cricketing success of India.
He is a legendary figure in the history of Indian cricket and is known to have fast-medium bowling and power batting skills, which saw him lead India to the 1983 World Cup victory, featuring him on the list of the most wickets for India in international cricket.
Along with being one of the highest wicket taker in India, he is considered one of the legendary captains in the history of Indian cricket.
Ravindra Jadeja
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 88 | 19,902 | 342 | 25.1 | 7/42 |
ODI | 204 | 10,116 | 231 | 35.41 | 5/33 |
T20I | 74 | 1,356 | 54 | 29.85 | 3/15 |
Ravindra Jadeja is a left-hand spinner and one of the highest wicket taker in India, with 342 wickets in Test, 231 wickets in ODI, and 54 wickets in T20I.
Apart from being listed as the highest wicket taker in all formats, he is considered to be a good fielder, accurate in bowling, and an all rounder, who has the best bowling figure of 7 for 42 in the Test format . Jadeja is also the longest consecutively reigning world No.1 all rounder in the ICC Rankings.
Zaheer Khan
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 92 | 18,785 | 311 | 32.95 | 7/87 |
ODI | 200 | 10,097 | 282 | 29.44 | 5/42 |
T20I | 17 | 352 | 17 | 26.35 | 4/19 |
One of the reliable bowlers among pacers in India is Zaheer Khan, who is well known for reverse swing. During his entire career, he has taken 311 Test, 282 ODI, and 17 T20I wickets, which makes him one of the highest wicket taker in India.
Zaheer also played a significant role with a bowling average of less than 33 across the formats on behalf of India in international cricket. He could swing the ball in either direction and hit crucial batters, all of which makes Zaheer one of the most legendary fast bowlers in India and one of players with the most wickets for India in all formats.
Javagal Srinath
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 67 | 15,104 | 236 | 30.49 | 8/86 |
ODI | 229 | 11,935 | 315 | 28.08 | 5/23 |
Javagal Srinath is among the greatest bowlers in India and the first Indian pace bowler to wicket more than 300 wickets in ODIs. He is a 236 Test and 315 ODI wicket-taker and one of the highest wicket taker in India in all forms.
Being a pace bowler and able to deliver under pressure, he became a central component of the bowling attack of India in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Jasprit Bumrah
Considered one of the best bowlers in the world today, Jasprit Bumrah is one of the highest wicket taker in India,. He has 232 Test, 149 ODI, and 99 T20I wickets, which have already made him one of the modern-day GOAT of the sport.
Bumrah, who is famous for his lethal yorkers, high speed, and consistency, is the first Indian to make it to the No.1 position in all three formats. His performance in all formats makes him one of the highest wicket takers in all formats as well as one of the modern day greats.
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 51 | 8,630 | 232 | 19.54 | 6/27 |
ODI | 89 | 4,580 | 149 | 23.55 | 6/19 |
T20I | 80 | 1,690 | 99 | 18.11 | 3/7 |
Mohammed Shami Ahmed
Mohammed Shami is considered to be among the greatest Indian bowlers of all time, who is known as a swing and reverse swing bowler.
He has 229 Test, 206 ODI, and 27 T20I wickets, hence one of the highest wicket taker in India. Shami has a great record for India and is the only Indian to take seven wickets in a single ODI innings. With a bowling average of less than 28, Shami is a pace, skill, and match-winning bowler who has been a major force for India.
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 64 | 11,515 | 229 | 27.71 | 6/56 |
ODI | 108 | 4,995 | 206 | 24.05 | 7/57 |
T20I | 25 | 510 | 27 | 28.18 | 3/15 |
Ishant Sharma
Event | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowling average | Best bowling |
Test | 105 | 19,160 | 311 | 32.4 | 7/74 |
ODI | 80 | 3,733 | 115 | 30.98 | 4/34 |
T20I | 14 | 278 | 8 | 50 | 2/34 |
Ishant Sharma is among the finest Indian bowlers of all time, famous for pace and bounce. He possesses 311 Test, 115 ODI, and 8 T20I wickets, which makes him one of the highest wicket taker in India.
His early striking ability and his ability to continuously harass the best batters had seen him become a major player in the bowling lineup of India. Holding the best bowling figure of 7 for 74 in Test and 4 for 34 in ODI, he ranks 10th in the most wickets for India in all formats.
Amit Mishra’s Take
India produces the best Indian bowlers of all time, who have always dominated the international cricketing arena. Legends such as Anil Kumble, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Kapil Dev are the highest wicket taker in India as ranked in the bowling charts in Test, ODI, and T20I.
Not only are these bowlers the highest wicket taker in India, but they also possess exceptional records in the sport, further contributing to India’s win in the international arena. They have played a central role in the history of Indian cricket with skill, accuracy, and match-winning abilities and have inspired the future generations of the game at the same time.
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