Ishant Sharma reaches 150-wicket mark in Test cricket

Pacer Ishant Sharma became the 11th Indian to take 150 Test wickets when he removed opener Hamish Rutherford on the opening day of the first cricket Test against New Zealand, here Thursday.

Auckland: Pacer Ishant Sharma became the 11th Indian to take 150 Test wickets when he removed opener Hamish Rutherford on the opening day of the first cricket Test against New Zealand, here Thursday.
Ishant reached the milestone in his 54th Test. After Zaheer Khan, the lanky speedster is currently India`s most experienced fast bowler. Ishant dismissed Rutherford for six in his first over of the innings after India won the toss and elected to bowl under overcast conditions. Rutherford played away from his body at one outside the off-stump, got a thick edge and was caught by Ajinkya Rahane, who dived across to his right to take a superb catch at gully. Later, Ishant was rewarded for his consistency as he picked up his second wicket, removing dangerman Ross Taylor for three in his fifth over. Taylor drove at a length ball but failed to keep it down. Ravindra Jadeja took a diving catch at wide mid-off to leave the visitors reeling at 34 for three. Kumble leads India`s wicket-takers with 619 in 132 tests and is third on the all-time list behind Sri Lanka`s Muttiah Muralitharan (800) and Australia`s Shane Warne (708).