Birthday Special: Top five performances by Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin is applauded by teammates as he walks back after the completion of New Zealand’s first innings during the third day of the first Test between India and New Zealand at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on August 25, 2012. (Getty Images)

2. 12/85 vs. New Zealand (First Test, Hyderabad, August 2012)

This was a game which stood out for its beautiful display of spin bowling, crafted by a young spin duo, as the helpless New Zealand batsmen struggled to get out of the tangle of webs cast upon them, in the first game of a two-match series against India at Hyderabad.

Ashwin shouldered the burden of leading the spin attack magnificently. He ran rings around the Kiwi batsmen in their first innings, bamboozling them with a mixture of off-breaks and traditional leg-breaks; varying his pace subtly and even utilising the carom ball on occasion. Six batsmen fell to his guiles in New Zealand’s first essay, forcing them to follow-on and dance to the spinners’ tunes yet again.

With Pragyan Ojha also casting his own magical spell against the opposition, Ashwin kept pegging away at the wickets. Only Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson managed to keep him at bay for a considerable amount of time, as they put together a 50-plus stand in the only occasion where the Kiwis defied the Indian bowling.

The spinner was not to be denied, however, and he completed his first 10-wicket haul in Test cricket by removing Chris Martin for a duck to spark off celebrations in the Indian camp. Six more wickets landed in his kitty, and a good knock with the bat in India’s only time at the crease did his reputation no harm either.