NEW DELHI: India's premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will be eyeing a memorable outing in his landmark 100th Test when India face England in the fifth and final Test match at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala. India have already secured an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the ongoing series.
The
Dharamsala Test
, commencing on March 7th, will witness a rare occurrence as two players mark their 100th appearance together for only the fourth time.
Ashwin and England's Jonny Bairstow will grace the picturesque stadium on Thursday for this milestone match.
The first instance of such a feat was witnessed when former England captain Michael Atherton and Alec Stewart reached the milestone against the West Indies at Old Trafford in 2000.
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The second occurrence involved three players as South Africa's Jacques Kallis, Shaun Pollock, and Stephen Fleming celebrated their 100th Test during the South Africa-New Zealand match in Centurion in 2006.
The third instance took place with Alastair Cook and Michael Clarke in the England-Australia Ashes contest in Perth in 2013.
Former India spinner
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan
expressed his disappointment with Ashwin for lack of 'respect'.
Sivaramakrishnan, who played 9 Tests and 16 ODI for India between 1983 and 1987, took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote: "Tried calling him a few times to wish him for his 100th Test. Just cut off my call. Sent him a message, no reply. That's the respect we former cricketers get."
Ashwin, who recently became only the second Indian after Anil Kumble to cross 500 wickets in the game's longest format,
Ashwin went past the 500-wicket mark in the third Test in Rajkot to become only the second Indian to achieve the feat.
He will now aim to break legendary Kumble's record of 35 five-wicket hauls.
Ashwin also has 35 five-wicket hauls in Tests; and if he manages to pick another five-for in Dharamsala, he will overtake Kumble.
Muthiah Muralitharan (67), Shane Warne (37), and Richard Hadlee (36) are the top three bowlers with the most five-wicket hauls in Test cricket.
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