Arshdeep Singh made history on Wednesday night, becoming the highest Indian wicket-taker in T20I cricket in the first game against England. The left-arm seamer, still only 25 years old, achieved the record after picking up the wickets of Phil Salt and Ben Duckett in his opening spell. Those two wickets took his T20I tally to 97, one ahead of previous record-holder Yuzvendra Chahal. Speaking after the game, Arshdeep apologized to Chahal for overtaking his tally with a rather hilarious act.
In a video posted by BCCI, Arshdeep was seen holding his ears jokingly, as he apologized to Yuzvendra Chahal for breaking his record.
While Chahal took his 96 wickets in 80 games, Arshdeep has reached his tally in a rather phenomenal rate. The left-arm pacer has taken only 61 games to reach 97 wickets, at an average of only 17.90 and a strike rate of 13.03, meaning he takes up a wicket nearly every two overs.
Arshdeep set the tone for India’s dominant victory in the first T20I, ending with figures of 2/17 in four overs. Given his form and prowess in the shortest format, he is all but certain to reach the 100-wicket mark by the end of the five-match T20I series.
Arshdeep has also been selected for India in their Champions Trophy 2025 squad, and has a good chance of featuring in the playing XI given the fitness concerns surrounding Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.
Chahal, however, hasn’t represented India in a T20I since August 2023, although he was part of their T20 World Cup 2024-winning squad.
The wrist spinner has put up a series of cryptic posts on Instagram in recent weeks, amid rumours of divorce from wife Dhanashree Verma.
On Wednesday, Chahal posted a picture with the caption “Real love is rare. Hi, my name is ‘Rare’.”
India take on England in the second T20I in Chennai on January 25.
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