Top 5 Indian Off Spinners of all time

What constitutes a truly national tradition? Probably, the universal practice of an art form that cuts across regions and social classes in a country.

If we apply this yardstick to off-spin bowling, we are not far off from the truth if we say that it is truly one of the Great traditions Indian cricket.

Scores of off-spinners have plied their trade and passed on the necessary craft knowledge to the next generation.

From Ghulam Ahmed to Washington Sundar, there is an endless line of exceptional off-spinners who not only practiced this art but, in their unique way contributed towards expanding the grammar of this form of slow bowling.

We look at top five exceptional practitioners of off-spin bowling who played for India.

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#5 Ghulam Ahmed

Ahmed was the first true great off-spinner for India

The decade of the 50s bore witness to the formation of India's first great spin triumvirate of Mankad, Ahmed and Gupte. Tall and slim, Ghulam Ahmed had a nice side on action.

His height prevented him from giving excess loop but his sharp spin off the wicket spelled doom for many a batsman.

He also bowled a well concealed straighter one and a leg cutter.

Accurate and steady on normal wickets, Ahmed became deadly on slightly helpful wickets. At Calcutta(now Kolkata) 1956 against a touring Australian side, he captured seven wickets for 49 runs in the first innings and ended the test with 10 for 130. His contributions in the English summer of 1952 read: 15 wickets at 24.73 a piece in four tests.

He captured 68 wickets in a total of 22 test matches he played at an average of 30.17. He also captained India in three tests, one against New Zealand in 1955-56 and twice against the Windies in his last series as an Indian Cricketer in 1958-59.

#4 Srinivas Venkatraghvan

Venkataraghvan prized out 156 wickets in his 57 test long career

The gentleman from Madras(now Chennai), Venkatraghvan, was the most underrated member of our famed spin quartet in the 1970s.

Methods that were more subtle than spectacular, Venkatraghvan prized out 156 wickets in his 57 test long career.

Quicker through the air, his stock ball had less apparent variation in flight.

His most dangerous delivery was his well-concealed straighter one which moved slightly away on hitting the seam.

He captured five for 95 in India's maiden victory on Caribbean shores in 1971. His contribution in the famous victory at the Oval in the English summer was equally critical.

Tall and suave, a shrewd tactician and a sharp close-in fieldsman, Venkatraghavan often played under the shadow of his more illustrious counterparts of the spin quartet. He last played for India in 1983.

#3 Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin became the fastest bowler to reach the 250 and 300-wicket marks

Cerebral and tall, Ravichandran Ashwin is every bit the modern off-spinner who has to shuttle between three different formats of the game.

Still very much at his peak, Ashwin has generated ridiculous numbers in the longest format of the game. He became the fastest bowler in the world to reach the 250 and 300 wicket mark.

Thoughtful and inventive, Ashwin has complete mastery over his flight and loop, a potent stock ball, a well-concealed arm ball. a top spinner and the carrom ball.

His methods have brought him incredible success on the subcontinental pitches. The future tours of Australia, England and New Zealand will have a huge impact on how posterity would judge him.

He has 263 wickets at an average of 22.75 in 42 tests on Asian soil. Ashwin is set to rewrite the record books if he continues his golden run for a few more years.

#2 Harbhajan Singh

The Turbanator has 417 wickets in 103 wickets

The feisty Sardar from Jalandhar captured the nation's imagination during that epic series against the mighty Australians in 2001.

He captured 32 wickets in that series. He is India's most successful off-spinner with a tally of 417 wickets in 103 tests.

As a skinny boy with a combative streak hajji made his debut against Australia in 1998. He was the first Indian to bowl the doosra.

An energetic run-up finishing with a slightly open-chested action, Turbanator, bowled his stock ball with a lot of overspin getting the disconcerting bounce off a length. His most prolific mode of dismissal was caught bat-pad on the leg side.

Constant shuttling between formats did take a toll on his effectiveness as a test bowler post-2007.

In the 46 tests he played post-2007, he averaged 35.91 which is three runs more than his career average.

He last played a test for India in 2015 and still very much active in the domestic setup.

#1 Erapalli Prasanna

Prasanna had mastery over the flight and loop of his deliveries

Short and stout, sly as a fox, Prasanna was perhaps the greatest practitioner of off-spin bowling in the 1970s.

He put a lot of thought into his deliveries. He picked a total of 189 wickets in his 49 test long career.

A brisk run-up, fast arm and fierce revolutions on the ball deceived many a batsman in his time. He had complete mastery over the flight and loop of his deliveries.

Prasanna got prodigious drift and dip. He was the architect of India's first series win on New Zealand soil in 1967-68 under 'Tiger' Pataudi.

In Australia, often considered the graveyard of off-spinners, he averaged 31.12 capturing 31 wickets in eight tests. He captured 81 wickets at an average of 17.61 in 15 victorious matches. He last played for India in 1978.