Kumble, Tendulkar Or Dravid: India's Greatest Match-Winner?

Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, and Rahul Dravid did exceptionally well for their team in international cricket. They led India to famous wins in Whites...

- Renin Wilben

Former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has termed retired Indian leg-spinner, Anil Kumble, as the ‘greatest match-winner’ India has ever produced. According to Harbhajan, Kumble was an unbelievably committed play-er. He added that although Kumble was often criticized for not turning the ball enough, the former captain proved that if you have the heart, you can get the batsman out regardless of the amount of turn. Singh’s accolade for Kumble is a massive one considering that Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid are also often mentioned when it comes to naming India’s greatest match-winner. In the wake of Harbhajan’s latest claims, we do a statistical analysis of the three greats to find out the kind of impact they had on the team. (Since Test cricket is still considered the ultimate format of the sport, we have restricted our research to the longest version.)

ANIL KUMBLE

OVERALL TEST RECORD

Kumble featured in 132 Tests for India and picked up a rich haul of 619 wickets at an average of 29.65 with 35 five-wicket hauls and eight 10-wicket match hauls. He stands third on the list of most wickets in Test cricket, behind only Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. He is also only the second player in history to pick up all 10 wickets in Test innings.

RECORD IN INDIA’S WINNING MATCHES