Adil Rashid, England’s premier spinner, etched his name in the history books on Saturday by becoming the first English spinner to reach the milestone of 200 ODI wickets. This remarkable achievement came during the second ODI against Australia at Leeds.
In his 10 overs, Rashid displayed his exceptional skills, claiming the wickets of Glenn Maxwell and Adam Zampa while conceding only 42 runs at an economical rate of 4.20. With this performance, Rashid has now taken 201 wickets in 137 ODIs since his debut in 2009. His impressive average of 32.22 and best figures of 5/27 are a testament to his consistency and effectiveness.
Rashid’s eight four-wicket hauls and two five-wicket hauls in ODIs further highlight his ability to make a significant impact on matches. He is now England’s third-highest wicket-taker in ODIs, behind only pace bowlers James Anderson (269 wickets) and Darren Gough (234 wickets).
In the match against Australia, England won the toss and elected to field first. Matthew Short and Travis Head provided a solid start with a 46-run opening partnership. However, Rashid and his fellow bowlers quickly turned the tide in England’s favor.
After the early dismissals of Short and Head, Mitchell Marsh and Marnus Labuschagne steadied the Australian innings with a 56-run stand. But England’s bowlers continued to apply pressure, and wickets fell at regular intervals.
Alex Carey emerged as a lone warrior for Australia, scoring a valiant 74 off 67 balls. However, his efforts were not enough to prevent Australia from being bowled out for 270 in 44.4 overs.
Brydon Carse was the pick of the English bowlers, claiming 3/75. Rashid, Jacob Bethell, and Matthew Potts also contributed with two wickets each.
With this victory, England leveled the five-match series 1-1. The third ODI will be played on Tuesday at Manchester.