Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 16 : India's spin maestro Ravichandran Ashwin, who on Friday reached a massive career milestone of 500 Test wickets, dedicated the historic achievement to his father and his continued support throughout his career.
Ashwin on Friday added another gem to his crown as he became only the second Indian after Anil Kumble to reach the landmark of 500 wickets in Tests. The star spinner achieved the feat during the ongoing third Test against England. He was on 499 scalps at the end of the second Test in Vizag and completed his 500th with the wicket of Zak Crawley on Day 2 of the third Test.
"It's been quite a long journey. Firstly I'd like to dedicate this feat to my father. He's been with me through thick and thin and probably had a heart attack every time he's watched me play. His health has probably gone for a toss because of that," Ashwin said in a post-match presentation at the end of the day's play.
On Day 2, England rode Ben Duckett's counter-attacking 133 runs to end the day at 207 with just two wickets loss, giving the visitors hope against the hosts as they trailed by just 238 runs going into Day 3.
"England are showing a lot of intent, playing like they would in an ODI or T20 game. Given us a lot to think about, we have to keep doing what we're doing and hope that one goes to hand. The surfaces we've played on in this series have allowed the batters time on the first three days," Ashwin said of England's aggressive batting.
"Expect this pitch to get hard on Day 5. We need to exercise discipline, England have been in such positions before. I think the game is in the balance, they're putting us under pressure but it's important we stay composed and stay in the game," Ashwin added.
Anil Kumble, with a career tally of 619 wickets, is currently ahead of Ashwin in the list of Indian wicket-takers in the game's longest format.
Ashwin achieved the feat in 98 Test matches, making him the second-quickest in Test history to the milestone after Muttiah Muralitharan.
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