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If Varun Chakaravarthy manages to take at least four wickets in the fifth T20I against England at Wankhede Stadium, then he will break the record for most wickets in a bilateral T20I series.
Varun Chakravarthy needs 4 wickets to break Jason Holder’s of most wickets in a bilateral T20I series. (Picture Credit: AFP)
Varun Chakaravarthy has been on fire for India in the ongoing five-match T20I series against England. The 33-year-old spinner from Tamil Nadu has picked up 3, 2, 5, and 2 wickets in four matches played so far in Kolkata, Chennai, Rajkot, and Pune, respectively. With 12 wickets to his name, Chakaravarthy is India’s leading wicket-taker in the series, and during the fifth T20I as well, which is scheduled to take place at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday, February 2, he would like to maintain his red-hot form and make life difficult for English batters.
During the last match of the series, Chakaravarthy will have a chance to create history. If the veteran of 17 T20Is who has 31 wickets to his name manages to take at least four wickets in Mumbai, then he will break the world record of taking most wickets in a bilateral T20I series. As of now, the record is held by West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder. During the five-match T20I series played between England and West Indies in 2022, Holder accounted for the dismissal of 15 English batters.
Most wickets in a bilateral T20I series
- Jason Holder (West Indies): 15 vs England (2022)
- Sami Sohail (Malawi): 14 vs Mozambique (2019)
- Ish Sodhi (New Zealand): 13 vs Australia (2021)
- Charles Hinze (Japan): 13 vs Mongolia (2024)
- Varun Chakaravarthy (India): 12 vs England (2025)*
- Varun Chakaravarthy (India): 12 vs South Africa (2024)
- Pratik Singh Bais (Mexico): 12 vs Costa Rica (2024)
- Sandeep Lamichhane (Nepal): 12 vs Kenya (2022)
- Hayden Walsh (West Indies): 12 vs Australia (2021)
Chakaravarthy holds the record of taking the most wickets in a bilateral T20I series for India, and in fact, he is the only Indian to dismiss at least 10 batters in a T20I series. If Chakaravarthy settles for only one wicket in the fifth T20I, then he will break his own record of most wickets in a bilateral T20I series as an Indian cricketer. During the India-South Africa four-match T20I series in November 2024 as well, Chakaravarthy accounted for the dismissal of 12 batters.
Most wickets in a bilateral T20I series for India
- Varun Chakaravarthy: 12* (India vs England T20Is, 2025)
- Varun Chakaravarthy: 12 (India vs South Africa T20Is, 2024)
- Ravichandran Ashwin: 9 (India vs Sri Lanka, 2016)
- Ravi Bishnoi: 9 (India vs Australia, 2023)
- Deepak Chahar: 8 (India vs Bangladesh, 2019)
- Axar Patel: 8 (India vs Australia, 2022)
- Ravi Bishnoi: 8 (India vs West Indies, 2022)
- Yuzvendra Chahal: 8 (India vs Sri Lanka, 2017)
- Mukesh Kumar: 8 (India vs Zimbabwe, 2024)
- Yuzvendra Chahal: 8 (India vs England, 2017)
- Washington Sundar: 8 (India vs Zimbabwe, 2024)
- Arshdeep Singh: 8 (India vs South Africa, 2024)
- Shardul Thakur: 8 (India vs New Zealand, 2020)
- Shardul Thakur: 8 (India vs England, 2021)
The record of taking the most wickets in a T20I series (multi-nation events) for India is in the name of Arshdeep Singh. The left-arm pacer played eight matches for India in the T20 World Cup 2024 and picked up 17 wickets. He is followed by Jasprit Bumrah, who finished the same tournament with 15 wickets in eight matches.
Most wickets in a T20I series for India
- Arshdeep Singh – 17 (T20 World Cup 2024)
- Jasprit Bumrah – 15 (T20 World Cup 2024)
- Varun Chakaravarthy – 12 (India vs England T20I series, 2025)*
- Varun Chakaravarthy – 12 (India vs South Africa T20I series, 2024)
- RP Singh – 12 (T20 World Cup 2007)
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 11 (Asia Cup 2022)
- Ravichandran Ashwin – 11 (T20 World Cup 2014)
- Hardik Pandya – 11 (T20 World Cup 2024)
To break Arshdeep’s record, Chakaravarthy needs at least six wickets at Wankhede Stadium. Only two Indian bowlers have managed to take six wickets in a T20I match so far. The record of taking most wickets in a T20I match for India against England is held by Yuzvendra Chahal, who, during the match played at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on February 1, 2017, finished with figures of 6 for 25 in four overs.
