Most Wickets For India In ODI

In ODI cricket India was not prominent for their bowling. Initially, Indian bowlers couldn’t bowl well in a match as a unit against strong teams. But since the beginning of 2010 new generation bowlers emerged who can take wickets in any condition. There are few bowlers who have given nightmares to the batsmen with their outstanding bowling like Anil Kumble, Kapil Dev, Zaheer Khan, J Srinath, etc. But only two bowlers from India have more than 300 wickets in ODI. Let’s discuss the bowlers with the most wickets for India in ODI format. 

Anil Kumble 

Legendary leggie Anil Kumble has taken the most number of wickets (337) for India in ODIs. Kumble made his ODI debut in 1990 against Sri Lanka and played till his last One Day match in 2008. Kumble used to bowl fast and wouldn’t spin the ball much, which batsmen found hard to play. He has the best bowling figure among Indian bowlers with more than 150 wickets. Kumble has also played the highest number of matches (269) as a bowler for India and had a commendable economy of 4.29. 

Javagal Srinath 

Ex-Indian fast bowler Javagal Srinath has bagged the second-most number of wickets (315) for India in the ODI format. Srinath is the only pacer who has played more than 300 ODI matches for India in his career of 13 years (1991-2003). Javagal Srinath holds the record of having the highest number of 5 wicket-hauls (3) among Indian seamers. Srinath was the head of the Indian pace battery in his time and was a part of the 2002 Champions Trophy-winning team also. 

Ajit Agarkar 

Former Indian seamer Ajit Agarkar has grabbed the 3rd most number of wickets (288) for India in ODIs. Agarkar played his first One Day match in 1998 against Australia and was a part of India’s ODI team till 2007. Agarkar also has the 2nd best bowling average (27.85) among the Indians who have played more than 100 matches. Ajit has also taken the most number of 4-fers (10) among Indian bowlers. He was known for his outstanding out-swing deliveries. 

Zaheer Khan 

Ex-Indian left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan has taken the 4th most wickets (269) in ODIs for India. Zaheer made his first appearance in ODIs in 2000 against Kenya and his fantastic ODI career ended in 2012. He made his reputation in international cricket because of spectacular swing bowling with the new ball initially and later on for his reverse swing and knuckleballs. Zaheer also played a huge role for India in winning the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 by being the highest wicket-taker with 22 wickets.

Harbhajan Singh 

Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has grabbed the 5th most number of wickets (265) in ODIs for India. Harbhajan had a long career of 17 years (1998-2017). Harbhajan was a bowler who could take wickets regardless of wickets. Harbhajan was also a part of India’s 2011 World Cup-winning team. His economy in the 50-over format was praiseworthy (4.30). 

Kapil Dev 

The 1983 World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev has the 6th most number of scalps (253) for India in the ODI format of the game. Kapil is one of the best all-rounders to ever play the game. He is the only fast-bowling all-rounder to be on the list of the top 10 wicket-takers for India in ODIs. Kapil used to bowl unplayable out-swinging deliveries. He even has the best bowling average (27.45) among the top 10 highest wicket-takers in ODI cricket. Along with wickets he has made 3783 runs in ODIs. 

Ravindra Jadeja 

Current Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has taken the 7th most number of ODI wickets (220) for India. So far Jadeja has done well in ODI cricket (since 2009), taking wickets with an admirable average of 36.07. He has also scored 2747 runs with an average of 32.70. It’s rare to get a player like Jadeja, who is equally good in all the departments of cricket. He is also one of the best fielders to ever play the game. Jadeja has also registered 7 four-wicket hauls in ODIs. Ravindra Jadeja was imparted the Golden Ball award in the 2013 Champions Trophy. 

Venkatesh Prasad 

Ex-Indian right-arm pacer Venkatesh Prasad has taken the 8th most number of wickets (196) for India in ODI cricket. In his 8 years (1994-2001) career Prasad was one of the best bowlers for India. Prasad used to bowl in the right areas with an average speed of 125 km/hr. He had a decent economy of 4.47 in One Day Internationals and a commendable average of 32.20. 

Mohammed Shami

One of the vital cogs of the current Indian bowling unit, Mohammed Shami recently waltzed into the top 10 list of most ODI wickets for India surpassing Manjo Prabhakar who had 157 wickets in his name. Shami has represented India in 101 ODIs so far and claimed 195 wickets at a staggering strike rate of 25.56.

Irfan Pathan

Former Left-arm seamer Irfan Pathan has bagged the 10th most number of wickets (173) for India in ODIs. Initially, Irfan was the fastest Indian to take 100 ODI wickets in 59 matches before Mohammad Shami broke his record in 2019 by taking it in just 56 matches. Pathan was known for swinging the ball both ways. His ODI career was of 9 years (2004-2012). 

Manoj Prabhakar 

Ex-Indian bowling all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar has grabbed the 11th Most ODI wickets (157) for India. In his 13 years (1984-1996) of ODI career, he has notched up 1858 runs also. He took wickets with an average of 28.87. He had 2 5-wicket hauls and four 4-wicket hauls in total in ODIs.

List Of Bowlers With Most ODI Wickets For India

Player	Matches	Innings	Wickets	Average	Strike Rate	Best	4-Fers	5-Fers
A Kumble	269	263	334	30.83	43.0	6/12	08	02
J Srinath	229	227	315	28.08	37.8	5/23	07	03
A Agarkar	191	188	288	27.85	32.9	6/42	10	02
Z Khan	194	191	269	30.11	36.4	5/42	07	01
H Singh	234	225	265	33.47	46.6	5/31	02	03
K Dev	225	221	253	27.45	44.2	5/43	03	01
R Jadeja	197	189	220	36.07	44.31	5/36	07	02
V Prasad	161	160	196	32.30	41.4	5/27	03	01
MD Shami	101	100	195	23.68	25.56	5/51	10	05
I Pathan	120	118	173	29.72	33.8	5/27	05	02
K Yadav	101	98	167	25.86	30.69	6/25	07	02
M Prabhakar	130	127	157	28.87	40.5	5/33	04	02
R Ashwin	116	114	156	33.20	40.40	4/25	01	–
A Nehra	117	117	155	31.60	36.36	6/23	05	02