Mumbai: India’s pace spearhead, Jasprit Bumrah, achieved a monumental career milestone during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final against England at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday as he became only the eighth Indian bowler to reach 500 international wickets with the first wicket he took off the opening delivery of his spell in the fifth over of England’s chase.
Since making his debut against Australia in Sydney on January 23, 2016, Bumrah has scalped 500 wickets across all formats, joining an elite club that includes cricketing legends Anil Kumble, Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh, Kapil Dev, Ravindra Jadeja, Zaheer Khan, and Javagal Srinath as the seven other bowlers to have achieved the feat.
The 32-year-old fast bowler from Ahmedabad has now picked 234 wickets in 52 Tests, 149 wickets in 89 ODIs, and 117 wickets in 94 T20Is, highlighting his consistent performance and powerful influence across all formats.
Bumrah’s performance in the ongoing T20 World Cup has been equally impressive. He had bagged nine wickets in six matches for the Suryakumar Yadav-led side, and took his tally to ten with England skipper Harry Brook’s wicket in the semi-final clash.
He was India’s top wicket-taker in the Super 8 matches against South Africa and the West Indies. Notably, he also dismissed two Pakistani batters, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha, in his very first over during the Group A match against the neighbouring nation at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo last month.
Achieving 500 wickets places Bumrah in an exclusive circle of India’s greatest bowlers, cementing his legacy as one of the most formidable fast bowlers in modern cricket.
Bumrah is India’s leading wicket-taker in T20 World Cup history. If he takes four wickets in the current semi-final against England, he will surpass Anrich Nortje’s record for the most wickets by a fast bowler in Men’s T20 World Cup history.
(IANS)
