Five brilliant bowling performances by Indians in T20Is

A five-wicket haul in a T20 match isn’t an everyday affair. Bowlers have only 24 deliveries to bowl to batsmen who are baying for blood.

Yuzvendra Chahal knows another bitter aspect of that contest between bat and bowl, given he plays for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL. The Chinnaswamy Stadium is a bowler’s graveyard. To pick a six-wicket haul on that batting paradise against a top-notch and ultra-long batting line-up is as extraordinary as it gets in international cricket.

What is more heartening for an Indian cricket fan is the fact that that performance catapulted Chahal to the third position on the list of best bowling figures in T20Is. Ajanta Mendis holds the top two spots, although six wickets is the maximum anyone has taken in a T20I match.

Chahal’s performance is way ahead of any other Indian bowlers’ performance in a T20I.

Here we take a look at the top 5 bowling performances by Indians in T20Is. In terms of runs and wickets, the top five are Chahal (6/25 v England, Bangalore), R Ashwin (4/8 v Sri Lanka, Visakhapatnam), Barinder Sran (4/10 v Zimbabwe, Harare), R Ashwin (4/11 v Australia, Dhaka) and Harbhajan Singh (4/12 v England, Colombo). However, the performances we look at below take into account the opposition, ground, conditions and importance of the match.

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#1 Yuzvendra Chahal (6/25 v England, Bengaluru, 2017)

With the series on the line, Chahal, India’s young leg-spinner, was given the new ball as India tried defending 203 on a batting paradise. Chahal picked up the prized scalp of Sam Billings, the England opener with his third ball before getting hit for a few runs.

In his second spell, he was deadly, picking up the well-settled Eoin Morgan and then Joe Root in consecutive deliveries. The two batsmen were on 40 and 42 respectively and had added 64 for the third wicket.

The RCB spinner then came back the next over to pick up the wickets of Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes and Chris Jordan to virtually seal the match for India. Thanks to his devastating second spell, England lost eight wickets for just eight runs in the span of 18 balls. He was, without a doubt, the Player of the Match and also the Player of the Series.

#2 RP Singh (4/13 v South Africa, Durban, 2007)

RP Singh dismantled South Africa’s top order

This sensational performance came in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup. Batting first, India made 153 in their allotted 20 overs with Rohit Sharma top-scoring with 50*. It seemed like an easy target for South Africa’s star-studded batting line-up but Singh gave the Indians a rousing start.

He picked up the big wickets of Herschelle Gibbs and Graeme Smith in his very first over (the second of the innings). After picking up Shaun Pollock’s wicket in his third over, Singh came back to take his fourth in the 19^th over, getting the wicket of Albie Morkel, who was the top-scorer in the South African innings.

South Africa were all out for 116 and India won the match by 37 runs. RP Singh missed out on the Player of the Match, surprisingly, with Rohit picking up the award instead.

#3 R Ashwin (4/11 v Australia, Mirpur, 2014)

Another high-quality performance was delivered by R Ashwin

Another high-pressure World Cup match and another high-quality performance was delivered by R Ashwin. Batting first, India posted 159 at Mirpur, which seemed like an easy target to overcome for the famed Australian batting line-up.

Ashwin dented their hopes though by picking up their openers, Aaron Finch and David Warner. He then picked up the wicket of the dangerous Glenn Maxwell, who top-scored with 23 in an overall, dismal batting performance.

Ashwin got James Muirhead to end the innings as Australia were all out for 86 and lost the match by a colossal 73 runs. Ashwin was, unsurprisingly, the Player of the Match, with Yuvraj Singh being the other contributor with 60 off 43 balls.

#4 R Ashwin (4/8 v Sri Lanka, Visakhapatnam, 2016)

Ashwin produced a masterclass against Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, batting first on a good wicket, got off to a disastrous start. Ashwin bowled one of the most devastating spells by an off-spinner in T20Is as he picked up the Sri Lankan openers, Niroshan Dickwella and T Dilshan in the first over of the innings (third and sixth balls).

Ashwin returned in his next over to pick up the skipper Dinesh Chandimal before dismissing Asela Gunaratne in his third over of the match. As a result, Sri Lanka were struggling at 20 for 4. They never really recovered from that, managing a paltry total of 82, which India chased down with nine wickets and 37 balls to spare.

#5 B Kumar (3/9 v Pakistan, Bangalore, 2012)

Bhuvi took India close to victory

In his debut match, B Kumar had just 133 runs to defend on a batting paradise. But, in a spell that is still remembered by many Indian fans, Kumar, who was making his T20I debut, produced vicious swing to give India a genuine opportunity to pull off an improbable victory.

That is why this performance ranks ahead of some of the others. Kumar was exceptional, getting the opener Nasir Jamshed in the first over of the innings and then Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal in his second over. Pakistan were 12 for 3 and in deep trouble. However, a 106-run fourth wicket partnership between Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez ensured they chased down 134 in the last over with five wickets to spare.

A few more runs on the board and Bhuvi’s performance would have been a match-winning one.