New record: Player becomes highest wicket-taker in T20 cricket
New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Gakebehra (Uttam Hindu News) - Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan, who has been shining in T20 cricket for a long time, has now become the highest wicket-taker in T20 cricket. The 26-year-old wrist spinner surpassed Dwayne Bravo's 631 wickets. He achieved this success on Tuesday by bowling out Dunit Velllalage against Paarl Royals in the SA 20 Qualifier 1, where he was playing for MI Cape Town.
Rashid told broadcasters after the match, "This is a huge success, I never thought about it. If you think about 10 years ago, I never thought I would reach here. Being from Afghanistan, it is a matter of pride for me. Bravo is one of the best bowlers in T20. It is a great honour and I will look to take it forward."
Rashid made his T20 debut as a teenager in October 2015. He is now fast approaching 500 matches and has become a hugely popular player in leagues around the world. He has won one IPL title and one PSL title and was a household name at the Adelaide Strikers (BBL), where he played 69 matches for the Strikers, with career-best figures of six wickets for 17 runs.
The ability to bowl fast in the air and keep the stumps in the game made Rashid an extremely difficult bowler to face, especially when it was difficult to pick which way the ball would turn. He gives batsmen no time to adjust and gives very little indication of what was going to happen. Eventually, teams have started playing him comfortably, without taking too many risks. Rashid can fit into any team. He has taken four or more wickets 20 times, but his quality is that he can always keep the opposition batsmen in check. Rashid had explained in an interview with The Cricket Monthly last year how wickets were not his priority. He had said, "If someone is going after me, I am going to make it very difficult for him. If he still hits me, it is a good shot. But I will not ease up on building pressure. It is about making things more difficult for the batsman."
As he gained experience, Rashid has played in The Hundred, CPL and BPL, which also improved his batting. He is known for his ability to come in and hit straight sixes and has a shot of his own called the snake shot, where he comes under a yorker length delivery and rotates his wrists to the extent that the ball makes contact with the bat and then the bat comes back like whiplash.
Rashid's all-rounder skills were on display in the IPL 2018 playoffs when he scored 34 runs in just 10 balls to take his team Sunrisers Hyderabad to a total of 170 and then helped the team defend it by taking 3 wickets for 19 runs and taking two catches. His current IPL team Gujarat Titans have retained him for 15 crores this time.
