India vs South Africa: R Ashwin equals Muttiah Muralitharan’s record for fastest to 350 Test wickets

Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin became the fastest Indian bowler to take 350 wickets in Test matches. 

Ashwin achieved this feat when he dismissed Theunis de Bruyn in the Test series against South Africa in Visakhapatnam.

Ashwin has taken 66 Tests to reach 350 wickets. Muttiah Muralitharan - who leads the all-time wicket-takers list with 800 wickets - also got to the landmark in his 66th Test.

Congratulations to @ashwinravi99 the spin wizard on his 350 Test wickets

He is the joint fastest with Muralitharan to achieve this feat.#INDvSA pic.twitter.com/xsFr1XopWT

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 6, 2019

R Ashwin also became the fastest Indian bowler to get to 350 Test wickets. Anil Kumble - who leads India's wicket-taking list in Tests with 619 scalps - had previously held the record.

Kumble reached the milestone in 77 Tests while Harbhajan Singh took 83 wickets to reach the 350 wickets landmark.

The series against the Proteas is Ashwin's comeback to international cricket after nearly a year's absence.

He went on to pick up his 27th 5-wicket haul in the 1st innings of the ongoing Test. 

Ashwin finished with figures of 7/145 -- the 5th time he picked up 7 wickets in an innings in Test cricket.

All-time leading Test wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan (45), Rangana Herath (26) and Anil Kumble (25) are the only other bowlers to have more five-fors in their home countries than Ashwin's 21.

Ashwin had also gone past Dale Steyn while tying with James Anderson and Ian Botham on the seventh spot on the list of players with the most 5-wicket hauls in Tests.