Top 5 wicket-takers in Tests between India and Sri Lanka

We are only a few days away from the commencement of India’s month-and-a-half long Tour of Sri Lanka which comprises of three Tests, five ODIs, and a T20I. The two-day warm-up match between the Indian team and the Sri Lanka Board President’s XI at Colombo began yesterday with Sri Lanka collapsing from 139/1 to 187 all out courtesy of Kuldeep Yadav’s 4/14 and Ravindra Jadeja’s 3/31.

In reply, India made 312/9 thanks to fifties from KL Rahul (who came back from a four-month long break to recover from his shoulder injury) and Virat Kohli in addition to contributions from Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, and Wriddhiman Saha.

India first played a Test against Sri Lanka in 1982 and have gone on to play each other in a total of 38 Tests- 17 of them in India, and the remaining 21 in Sri Lanka. So far, India have won 16 matches (10 in India and 6 in Sri Lanka) while Sri Lanka have won 7 (all at home). The remaining 15 matches have ended in draws.

Both nations have produced some brilliant bowlers and many of them have produced some scintillating spells in all the Tests India and Sri Lanka have locked horns in. Here are the Top 5 wicket-takers in India-Sri Lanka Test matches.

#5 Ajantha Mendis- 34 wickets

A number of Ajantha Mendis’ best Test performances have come against India. Out of his 70 Test wickets, the Mystery Spinner has taken nearly half of them against India including 4 wickets in both innings of his debut Test against India at Colombo.

His figures of 8/132 are the best by any Sri Lankan bowler on his Test debut. Mendis’ lone Man of the Series in Test cricket also came against India.

Extra cover: 5 memorable India and Sri Lanka Encounters in Tests

In two years, Mendis had taken 34 wickets in 6 Tests against India at an average of 29 with a spell of 6/117 at Galle (in a losing cause) during his debut Test series being his best bowling figures in Test match cricket in addition to being his best bowling figures in Indo-Lankan Tests (he also attained his best Test match bowling figures of 10/209 in this match).

Mendis went on to take another five-wicket haul against India in that very series. He last played a Test against India in 2010 at Colombo which India went on to win.

#4 Kapil Dev- 45 wickets

The former Indian skipper picked up 45 wickets against Sri Lanka

India’s greatest all-rounder ever, Kapil Dev took 45 of 434 Test wickets against Sri Lanka in 14 Tests across 12 years at an average of 26.55 and at an economy rate of 2.64 which is the least for any bowler who has played in more than 10 Indo-Lankan Test matches.

The Haryana Hurricane’s best bowling spell in an innings against Sri Lanka came in the first India-Sri Lanka Test match at Chennai on September 17, 1982 where Kapil took 5/110 in the second innings, his 12th 5-wicket haul in Tests.

This was to be his only fifer against the Island nation. In that very match, Kapil Dev also recorded his best bowling figures against Sri Lanka - 8/207. One of the World Cup winning captain’s most notable spells against Sri Lanka came at Cuttack in 1987 when he took 4/69 in the first innings and India eventually went on to win the match. Thanks to his first innings fifty, Kapil was adjudged the Man of the Match.

The all-rounder’s final Test against Sri Lanka came in 1994 at Ahmedabad which was also his penultimate Test match.

#3 Harbhajan Singh- 53 wickets

Bhajji took 53 of his 417 Test wickets against the Island nation

The turbanator is third amongst the highest wicket-takers in India-Sri Lanka Tests with 53 wickets in 16 Test matches between 1999 and 2015 at an average of 39.77 with figures of 7/62 at Ahmedabad being his best against Sri Lanka. In that very match, Bhajji mustered 10/141.

Harbhajan has taken a total of two five-wicket hauls against Sri Lanka, the second one coming in 2008 at Galle where he went on to finish the match with 10 wickets. Harbhajan’s final Test against Sri Lanka was at Galle in 2015 which India lost with the off-spinner ending the match with figures of 1/90. This is also the last Test Bhajji played in.

#2 Anil Kumble- 74 wickets

Jumbo has taken the most number of wickets by an Indian in Tests against Sri Lanka

Between 1993 and 2008, Anil Kumble played 18 tests against Sri Lanka, picking up 74 wickets at an average of 31.20 and at an economy rate of 2.67 with a spell of 7/59 at Lucknow in 1994 being his best bowling figures against Sri Lanka. Kumble took 4 more wickets in that very match to end with match figures of 11/128 which is his best match figures against the Islanders.

In addition to his seven-wicket spell, Kumble has taken another three five-wicket hauls- twice at Colombo in 1993, and once at Delhi in 2005 where he ended the match with 10 wickets. Kumble was adjudged the Man of the Match on both occasions when he ended up taking 10 wickets in the match.

Kumble’s final Test against Sri Lanka was at Colombo in 2008 during his penultimate Test series.

#1 Muttiah Muralitharan- 105 wickets

Murali has taken the most number of wickets in India-Sri Lanka Test matches with 105

With Anil Kumble at No.2, you hardly need to guess who’s at number 1. The leading Test wicket taker has taken 105 wickets against India, the most number of wickets he has taken against any nation barring Australia. Murali has taken these many wickets in 22 Test matches across 17 years from 1993-2010 at an average of 32.61 and an economy rate of 2.92.

Against India, the offie has taken seven five-wicket hauls and two ten-wicket hauls, the first one of which comprises his best bowling figures against India of 8/87 in an innings and the second one of which is his best match figures against India of 11/110.

Muralitharan’s last Test match of his career came against India at Galle in 2010 where he took 5/63 in the first innings followed by 3/128 in the second innings as Sri Lanka went on to win the match by 10 wickets.