Yasir Shah, who is just 5 wickets away from becoming the fastest Asian to reach 100 Test wickets, overtaking Ravichandran Ashwin, was wished by the latter before the first test match between Pakistan and West Indies at the Abu Dhabi international stadium. The match is termed by many as a historic moment for both the nations as they are playing their first day-night Test match.
The match at Abu Dhabi will be only the second day-night Test match in the history of cricket, with the first one being played between Australia and New Zealand in 2014. With the match being closely watched by many, the Pakistani fans will be keeping a close eye on their talented spinner as well.
Ashwin reached the magical figure of 100 wickets in his 18th Test match against West Indies, while Yasir is playing his 17th Test match right now and needs just five more scalps.
Also read: Decoding the Yasir Shah conundrum
Ashwin has recently been lauded for his tremendous performance in the recently concluded Test series against New Zealand. The off-spinner took 27 wickets in three Test matches which included three five-wicket hauls. Ashwin's performances were instrumental in India reaching the top of the ICC Test team rankings displacing Pakistan.
Faizan Lakhani, a Pakistani journalist posted a tweet on Wednesday reminding the cricket fans that Shah was just five wickets away from breaking Ashwin's record.
Surprisingly Ashwin replied to the tweet with a pleasing message. The off-spinner wished the Pakistan spinner luck in his hunt to become the fastest Asian to reach 100 Test wickets.
The off-spinner has often tried to be witty with his tweets but this time, he lived upto the reputation of a true sportsman. Ashwin’s gesture was well received by the fans of both the nations. The fans of Pakistan seemed to be over the moon as they started thanking Ashwin for the support.
The fans even congratulated him on clinching the top spot in the ICC Test rankings for bowlers after his stellar performances against New Zealand.
Also read: Stats don’t lie: R Ashwin is a better Test bowler than Harbhajan Singh
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