Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav is subtly approaching a milestone that highlights his development from a rookie bowler to one of the country’s most reliable white-ball performers. The left-arm unconventional spinner is nine wickets away from reaching 200 scalps in the 50-over game as the Indian squad gets ready to welcome New Zealand in the three-match ODI series starting on January 11.
The left-arm leggie has established a reputation for taking wickets in the middle overs since making his ODI debut in 2017. He has taken 191 wickets at a remarkable average of 26.29 in 117 ODIs thus far, figures that demonstrate both consistency and impact. If he reaches the 200-plus-wicket mark in the forthcoming series, he will become just the fourth spinner and the eighth Indian bowler to do so.
Anil Kumble, who ended his career with 334 wickets from 269 games, continues to set the standard for Indian ODI bowling. In addition to spinners Harbhajan Singh (265) and Ravindra Jadeja (232), other notable names on the list include Javagal Srinath (315), Ajit Agarkar (288), and Zaheer Khan (269). The prominence of the team Kuldeep would be joining is further highlighted by Mohammed Shami (206) and Kapil Dev (253).
India’s most wickets in ODIs
| Position | Player Name | Career Span | Wickets |
| 1 | Anil Kumble | 1990-2007 | 334 |
| 2 | Javagal Srinath | 1991-2003 | 315 |
| 3 | Ajit Agarkar | 1998-2007 | 288 |
| 4 | Zaheer Khan | 2000-2012 | 269 |
| 5 | Harbhajan Singh | 1998-2015 | 265 |
| 6 | Kapil Dev | 1978-1994 | 253 |
| 7 | Ravindra Jadeja | 2009-Present | 232 |
| 8 | Mohammed Shami | 2012-Present | 206 |
| 9 | Venkatesh Prasad | 1994-2001 | 196 |
| 10 | Kuldeep Yadav | 2017-Present | 191 |
Nine four-wicket hauls and two five-wicket appearances have already been added to the Uttar Pradesh cricketer’s record, demonstrating his worth as a strike bowler rather than a containing option. In addition to hitting the milestone of 200 wickets, Kuldeep Yadav only needs to capture six more wickets to surpass seasoned spinner Venkatesh Prasad’s total of 196.
Kuldeep Yadav had yet another successful ODI season in 2025.
With his best spell of 4-41, he concluded the year with 19 wickets from 11 games at an average of 29.00. His spells often applied pressure and created opportunities for others, even though they weren’t particularly noteworthy in every game. They also contributed significantly to the Men in Blue’s success in the format the year before, including a Champions Trophy victory.
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