Anil Kumble is unmatchable when it comes to bowlers from India. With 619 Test wickets and 334 ODI wickets, the former Indian cricket team captain has the highest number of scalps, in both formats, among his compatriots.
However, in such an illustrious career, one achievement that seats as the crown jewel is Kumble’s 10/74 against Pakistan at Feroze Shah Kotla. On February 7th ,1999,Indian spin legend Anil Kumble entered the record books by capturing all 10 Pakistani wickets in the second innings of a Test at Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
As the spin wizard went about weaving his web around the hapless Pakistanis, the specter of matching Jim Laker’s record started emerging. Kumble emulated Englishman Jim Laker’s feat against Australia 43 years ago .
Pakistan’s tail folded out to Kumble’s guile and precision and when Washim Akram fell as the last man, Kumble’s name made its entry into the record books alongside that of Jim Laker’s.
The feat was made all the more special since it was against arch-rivlas Pakistan, and that too the Test series was the first on Indian soil between the two teams in 12 years.
The moment Kumble took his final wicket the 25,000 crowd at the Kotla broke into an ecstatic dance, chanting “Kumble”, “Kumble”. The Indian team carried Kumble to the pavilion in their arms.
Anil Kumble represented the terms hard trier, match-winner, and a fighter in Indian cricket. Being India’s most effective bowler in both Tests and ODIs, Kumble spearheaded the Indian bowling attack for more than a decade. Most remembered for being an out-and-out team man, he has been one of the greatest spinners to have ever played the game.
In a spectacular yet downplayed career, affectionately called ,“Jumbo” claimed practically every Indian record.
The leg-spinner received the ultimate gift in the twilight of his career after he was named India’s Test skipper in 2007, following which he delivered India’s first win against Pakistan at home in 27 years.
The performance was rated by Wisden as the second best “Bowling performance of all time”.
The achievement was commemorated by naming a traffic circle in Bengaluru after him, and gifting him a car with the customised license plate: KA-10-N-10.
In a career spanning 18 long, glorious years, Kumble played 132 Tests and 271 ODIs, picking 619 wickets in the former, while claiming 337 in the latter. The veteran bowler retired as the third highest wicket-taker in Tests, behind legends Muttiah Muralidaran and Shane Warne.
