3 best Test bowling performances in Rajkot ft. Kuldeep Yadav

After a short break, India and England are set to resume their Test series, with the third game to be played at Rajkot on Thursday, February 15. The series is level at 1-1 and both teams will know just how crucial it is to draw first blood and gain an advantage.

The Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot is generally known to be a batting paradise. However, there's a reason why quality bowlers seem to find a way to keep chipping away with wickets even on pitches with little help.

On that note, let's take a look at three of the best bowling performances in Rajkot in the Test format:

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#3 Adil Rashid - 4/114, India vs England 2016, 1st Test

India walloped England 4-0 back in 2016 at home, and the only Test match where the hosts were forced to play for a draw was the first game of the series in Rajkot. Hundreds from Joe Root (124), Moeen Ali (117) & Ben Stokes (128) allowed England to post a mammoth 537 in their first innings.

India were in a strong position at 277/1 with a mammoth partnership between Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara. However, it was Adil Rashid's crucial breakthroughs that helped England take a 49-run lead into their second innings.

Rashid picked up big wickets of Vijay, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja and also Umesh Yadav. Defending a target of 310, the leg-spinner scalped three more wickets in India's second essay, but a determined knock of 49* from Kohli allowed the hosts to finish at 172/6 and save the game.

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#2 Ravichandran Ashwin - 4/37, India vs West Indies 2018, 1st Test

The first game of the 2018 Test series between India and West Indies was a classic example of just how ruthless India can be in home conditions. A sensational 134 on debut by Prithvi Shaw was followed by hundreds from Virat Kohli and local boy Ravindra Jadeja, helping the hosts post a mammoth 649/9 in their first innings.

The visitors just didn't have any answers in either of their innings, with two of the quality Indian spinners dominating the visitors in each innings. It was Ravichandran Ashwin in the first innings who did the bulk of the damage with figures of 4/37. Getting just 181 runs on the board, West Indies were asked to follow on.

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#1 Kuldeep Yadav - 5/57, India vs West Indies 2018, 1st Test

There was no respite for the visitors as it was Kuldeep Yadav's turn in the second innings to pile on more misery. Kieran Powell's 83 was the only saving grace in another dismal batting performance from the West Indies.

Kuldeep picked up sensational figures of 5/57, all five scalps being from the visitors' top six. They were skittled for just 196 and India capped off another resounding win at home.