Ranking the 10 greatest Indian men's bowlers of all time ft. Ravichandran Ashwin & Harbhajan Singh
Bowlers have often been an afterthought in the realms of Indian cricket with the stylish, elegant, and flamboyant batters taking precedence in terms of fan worship. Yet, some of India's greatest and most memorable wins have been built out of the relentlessness and clutch play of the bowlers.
Think back to the recent T20 World Cup final triumph when South Africa needed only a run-a-ball in the last five overs for glory or some of India's best wins in SENA countries to figure out who won those matches that remain etched in fans' memories forever and the answer will be unanimous - Indian bowlers.
While forgetting the bowlers during GOAT debates or picking favorites is par for the course in Indian cricket, it is only fair they receive a celebratory moment. And that's what the below Top 10 ranking of Indian bowlers intends to do - a celebration more than just placing one bowler higher or lower than the other.
Before starting the tributary ranking of the 10 greatest Indian bowlers, it is only fair we pay tribute to a few others - some of whom did not make the final list only because of a lack of white-ball cricket back in the day and others due to the limit of 10 on the rankings.
Honorable mentions:
BS Chandrasekar, EAS Prasanna, Ishant Sharma, Ajit Agarkar, Irfan Pathan, Venkatesh Prasad, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manoj Prabhakar, and Umesh Yadav.
#10 Bishan Singh Bedi
Arguably India's best bowler before the 1980s, the late Bishan Singh Bedi comes in at No.10 despite predominantly playing only the Test format.
Bedi formed a dominant spin quartet with BS Chandrasekar, EAS Prasanna, and S Venkataraghavan in the 1960s and 1970s. The left-arm spinner finished his illustrious Test career with 266 wickets at an average of 28.71, including 14 five-wicket hauls in 67 outings.
Bedi also played 10 ODIs in the infant stages of the format and picked up seven wickets.
Bishan Singh Bedi's international numbers
77 matches, 273 wickets, 29.21 average, 14 five-wicket hauls
#9 Mohammed Shami
One of India's modern greats Mohammed Shami is next on this esteemed list for his uncanny knack of picking up wickets at any stage of an innings across formats. On sheer skillset and talent, Shami could be argued as India's best in the pace-bowling department with his inimitable seam position, simple action, and deceptive pace.
The 34-year-old is India's eighth-highest wicket-taker of all-time with 448 scalps, including 11 five-wicket hauls. Shami is India's all-time leader in ODI World Cup wickets and fifth overall with 55 wickets at an other-worldly average of 13.52 in 18 games.
His overall ODI average of 23.68 is the best among Indian bowlers with at least 150 wickets.
Mohammed Shami's international numbers
188 matches, 448 wickets, 26.06 average, 11 five-wicket hauls
#8 Ravindra Jadeja
India's best all-format left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja takes his rightful place at No.8 among the nation's bowling greats. Renowned for his relentless accuracy and unflappable tenacity, Jadeja continues to go strong even as he approaches the age of 36.
He is sixth all-time among Indian bowlers in wickets with 573 and seventh in Tests at one shy of 300. Despite playing in a high-scoring era, Jadeja's ODI and T20Is economy rates of under 5 and 7.20, respectively, make him one of India's most reliable bowlers.
With Ravichandran Ashwin, Jadeja has formed an incredible partnership that has been the cornerstone of India's home domination in Tests over the past decade.
Ravindra Jadeja's international numbers
345 matches, 573 wickets, 29.18 average, 15 five-wicket hauls
#7 Jasprit Bumrah
The world's best bowler across formats currently by all accounts, Jasprit Bumrah is fast making his way up the all-time rankings among bowlers. At 30 and probably just entering the prime of his career, Bumrah is already 10th on India's leading wicket-takers chart with 402 scalps.
Bumrah boasts phenomenal averages of 24 in all three formats and an extraordinary sub-21 average in the Test and T20I formats. His overall career average of 21.04 is the second-best in cricket history behind only Joel Garner and to do all this in the batting-friendliest era is nothing short of staggering.
Beyond the numbers, Bumrah's impact across conditions at all phases of an innings in each format makes him an impenetrable threat to even the best batters around the world. The 30-year-old was the Player of the Tournament in India's recent T20 World Cup triumph with sensational averages and economy of under 9 and 5, respectively.
It would be a massive surprise if the ace pacer doesn't become one of India's, if not world's, three greatest bowlers in the next half-decade if he continues on this trajectory.
Jasprit Bumrah's international numbers
197 matches, 402 wickets, 21.04 average, 12 five-wicket hauls
#6 Zaheer Khan
India's best-ever left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan spearheaded their pace attack in the entire 2000s, making them a force for the first time in overseas Tests. Zaheer made his name troubling some of the best Test batters in cricket history like Graeme Smith and Andrew Strauss with his ability to bring the ball back in from the off-stump line.
The former pacer is fifth all-time among Indian bowlers and second among pacers in wickets with 597.
Zaheer also played a crucial role in India winning the 2011 ODI World Cup at home and is their fourth leading wicket-taker in the format with 269. The now-45-year-old is also fifth among Indian bowlers in Test wickets with 311 and is top 10 all-time in overall ODI World Cup wickets.
Zaheer Khan's international numbers
303 matches, 597 wickets, 31.48 average, 12 five-wicket hauls
#5 Javagal Srinath
Former right-arm pacer Javagal Srinath is the final name on the top five of the Indian bowler rankings. In an era when India relied solely on spinners to win matches, Srinath was the lone shining light among pacers.
The legendary pacer is seventh all-time among Indian bowlers with 551 wickets and joint-ninth all-time overall in ODI World Cup scalps with 44.
Srinath is second all-time among Indian cricketers in ODI wickets with 315 and has the second most five-wicket hauls among Indian pacers with 13.
Javagal Srinath's international numbers
296 matches, 551 wickets, 29.11 average, 13 five-wicket hauls
#4 Harbhajan Singh
The Mount Rushmore of Indian bowlers starts with former off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who weaved his magic across formats over 17 years. The 44-year-old remains India's third leading wicket-taker with 707 scalps in 365 outings.
Harbhajan is also one of only four Indian bowlers with over 400 Test wickets and is third all-time in overall five-wicket hauls with 28. The champion spinner was an integral part of India's 2007 T20 and 2011 ODI World Cup triumphs.
Harbhajan's 32 wickets in a three-Test series against Australia in 2001, including a hat-trick in the second Test is arguably the best moment of his illustrious career as India pulled off an improbable 2-1 series victory against a seemingly unbeatable Aussie unit.
Harbhajan Singh's international numbers
365 matches, 707 wickets, 32.59 average, 28 five-wicket hauls
#3 Ravichandran Ashwin
India's most accomplished off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin comes in at No.3 even as he continues to break records for fun by the day. The 38-year-old is India's second leading wicket-taker in Tests and across formats with 523 and 750 scalps, respectively.
Ashwin is one of only nine bowlers in world cricket with 500 Test wickets and his 37 five-wicket hauls in the format are the most by an Indian bowler. The veteran spinner has also achieved success in the white-ball formats with a combined 228 wickets while playing a role in India's 2011 ODI World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy triumphs.
Ashwin has been a massive reason behind India's incredible Test domination over the past decade and his average of 25.64 is the best by an Indian bowler with at least 500 international wickets.
Ravichandran Ashwin's international numbers
283 matches, 750 wickets, 25.64 average, 37 five-wicket hauls
#2 Kapil Dev
India's best-ever fast bowler Kapil Dev, who also captained the side to their first-ever World Cup win in 1983, comes in at No.2.
The now-65-year-old is fourth all-time among Indian bowlers and No.1 among pacers with 687 wickets. Kapil's 24 five-wicket hauls is also by far the most by an Indian pacer.
He is also the third-highest wicket-taker for India in Tests with 434 scalps at an average of 29.64 with 23 five-wicket hauls. Kapil is also sixth all-time among Indian bowlers in ODI wickets with 253 and his economy of 3.71 is the best by an Indian bowler in the 50-over format with at least 100 wickets.
Kapil Dev's international numbers
356 matches, 687 wickets, 28.83 average, 24 five-wicket hauls
#1 Anil Kumble
Former leg-spinner Anil Kumble is a no-brainer choice at No.1 among Indian bowlers. The 53-year-old is the fourth leading wicket-taker in Test history and the leader among Indian bowlers with 619 scalps.
Kumble is also India's all-time leading wicket-taker across formats with an incredible 953 scalps and is tied with Ashwin for the most five-wicket hauls with 37.
He is one of only three bowlers in world cricket to ever take all 10 wickets in a Test innings. Kumble is also India's all-time leader in ODI wickets with 334 scalps at an excellent economy of under 4.30.
Just the sheer consistency with such longevity and volume of numbers makes Kumble's place atop the Indian bowler rankings undebatable.
Anil Kumble's international numbers
401 matches, 953 wickets, 30.06 average, 37 five-wicket hauls