New Delhi: Left-arm pacer Ashwani Kumar enjoyed a stellar debut for Mumbai Indians (MI) in their clash against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 on Monday. Ashwani scripted history by recording the vest-ever figures by an Indian bowler on his IPL debut with a four-wicket haul at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
23-year-old Ashwani’s bowling heroics helped Mumbai Indians thrash Kolkata Knight Riders by 8 wickets at their home ground to bag their first win of the season. Ashwani dismissed KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane on his very first ball in the match to open his account before bagging the important wickets of Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey and Andre Ruseell to complete his 4-wicket haul.
He finished with excellent figures of 4/24 off his 3 overs to break the record held by former Rajasthan Royals pacer Amit Singh for the best figures by an Indian on his IPL debut. Amit finished with figures of 3/9 on his debut for the Rajasthan Royals against Punjab Kings on his debut in IPL 2009. Ashwani also became the first Indian to bag a four-fer on his IPL debut.
Riding on Ashwani’s bowling heroics, Mumbai Indians managed to skittle out KKR for a paltry 116 runs in just 16.2 overs before chasing down the target in just 12.5 overs to register a thumping victory. MI made light work of the 117-run target with the help of opener Ryan Rickelton’s unbeaten 62 off 41 balls and Suryakumar Yadav’s quickfire cameo of 9-ball 27.
Who is Mumbai Indians pacer Ashwani Kumar?
Ashwani Kumar is a left-arm fast bowler who hails from Jhanjeri village in Punjab’s Mohali. Ashwani played only 4 T20 matches for Punjab before making his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians on Monday. The left-arm pacer is the latest to join the list of young talents unearthed by Mumbai Indians, thanks to their robust scouting system.
MI scouts watched Ashwani play in the Sher E Punjab T20 competition in 2024 where he impressed many with his precision and variations in death bowling. The left-arm pacer was signed by Mumbai Indians at his base price of Rs 30 lakh in the IPL 2025 mega auction last year and went on to shine on his debut against KKR.
Ashwani is known for his ability to land yorkers with perfection in the death and also has some handy variations, including a back-of-the-hand slower delivery which he used well against KKR on his debut. He also has the zip in his bowling and his deliveries often generate late swing, helping him deceive batters.
Ashwani has so far played only 2 first-class and 4 List A matches in his career, with 6 wickets to his name. He is off to a dream start in his IPL career and will be hoping to make the most of it as the season progresses.
Left-arm pacer Ashwani Kumar recorded the best-figures by an Indian on his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians in their 8-wicket win against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday. Here is all you need to know about Ashwani. IPL Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
