India is known for producing elegant batters, with one after the other dominating on the international stage. However, the country has also seen some notable bowlers destroy batting lineups using their skills.
Many of these bowlers have paired well with their partners to keep things tight for the opponent batters from both ends. Their disciplined bowling attack has helped them garner plenty of wickets while bowling in tandem.
In this article, we’ll look at the top 10 Indian bowling pairs with the most wickets in Tests.
Most Wickets by an Indian Bowling Pair in Test
Bowling Pair | Matches | Wickets |
---|---|---|
Ravi Ashwin (317), Ravindra Jadeja (270) | 58 | 587 |
Anil Kumble (281), Harbhajan Singh (220) | 54 | 501 |
Harbhajan Singh (268), Zaheer Khan (206) | 59 | 474 |
Ravi Ashwin (278), Umesh Yadav (153) | 52 | 431 |
Anil Kumble (225), Javagal Srinath (187) | 52 | 412 |
Ravi Ashwin (271), Ishant Sharma (131) | 52 | 402 |
Kapil Dev (243), Ravi Shastri (151) | 79 | 394 |
Bishan Singh Bedi (184), Bhagwath Chandrasekhar (184) | 42 | 368 |
Ravi Ashwin (200), Mohammed Shami (161) | 44 | 361 |
Anil Kumble (200), Zaheer Khan (132) | 43 | 332 |
Key Insights
500: The duo of Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh became the first Indian pair to scalp 500 wickets in the longest format. In January 2024, another spin duo of Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja surpassed them to become the most successful Indian bowling pair in the Test format.
4: There’s no Indian bowler other than Ashwin, who has partnered with 4 different bowlers effectively. Apart from Jadeja, the astute off-spinner has bowled in tandem with Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, and Mohammed Shami — all 3 pacers — affecting 300+ dismissals with each of them.
200: Moreover, Ashwin has the distinction of grabbing 200 or more wickets while bowling in pairs with all 4 of them.
184: Bishan Singh Bedi and Bhagwath Chandrasekhar have picked up the same number of wickets each (184) while bowling together in Tests.