Sportskeeda Cricket Awards 2017: Top 10 Test bowlers of the year

Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin was India's leading wicket-taker in Tests in 2017

Ashwin has seen his stock drop rapidly in the limited-overs formats for India, but he has remained their premier bowler in the whites. He began the year in fine fashion, picking up six wickets in the one-off Test against Bangladesh. He followed that up with extremely impressive performances against the visiting Australian side in the four-Test series.

Ashwin was simply unplayable at times in the home season and accounted for 21 wickets in the four games, helping India seal a tightly-contested series victory.

Then came the Sri Lankan challenge, but Ashwin was more than up to the task. Spinning webs around the Lankan batsmen, Ashwin scalped 27 wickets in three matches and then returned home to face the same opposition. He did not enjoy the same success in his own backyard though, managing just 12 wickets from three matches, even going wicketless in the first Test at Kolkata, although he bowled just eight overs.

Ashwin ended the year as India's leading wicket-taker in the format, with 56 wickets at an average of just over 27.