Ravindra Jadeja becomes first Indian left-arm bowler to take 350 Test wickets

Ravindra Jadeja reached a major milestone on Day 3 of the Galle Test against Sri Lanka, becoming the first Indian left-arm bowler to claim 350 Test wickets. The 37-year-old all-rounder dismissed Keshara Nuwantha during the third session, with the ball deflecting off fielder Yashasvi Jaiswal to Shubman Gill. Mathrubhumi reports that Jadeja surpassed Zaheer Khan (311 wickets) as India's leading left-arm wicket-taker in Tests, and is the fifth Indian bowler overall to cross 350 wickets, after Anil Kumble, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kapil Dev and Harbhajan Singh.

Globally, Jadeja is the third left-arm spinner to achieve the mark, behind Rangana Herath and Daniel Vettori. National Herald notes that Jadeja is now only the fourth player in Test history to combine 4,000-plus runs with 350-plus wickets, joining Kapil Dev, Ian Botham and Vettori. The milestone came after Sri Lanka staged a recovery through a 146-run stand between Niroshan Dickwella (80) and Sonal Dinusha (89). India had posted 462 in their first innings, led by Devdutt Padikkal's 167.

The landmark places Jadeja in an elite all-rounder club and silences past critics, including a 'bits-and-pieces' tag from commentator Sanjay Manjrekar during the 2019 World Cup. National Herald adds that Jadeja was never considered for captaincy in any format. The Galle Test continues with Sri Lanka needing further runs to avoid a follow-on.