IPL 2025: MI's Ashwani Kumar picks 4/24 on IPL debut, registers best bowling figures on IPL debut by an Indian bowler

Mumbai Indians secured Ashwani Kumar for INR 30 lakh at the auction.

Mumbai Indians (MI) have taken complete control of their first home game of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The home side delivered a clinical bowling performance, bundling out the defending champions for just 116 runs.

After being sent to first, KKR got off to a disastrous start, losing openers Sunil Narine and Quinton de Kock with just two runs on the board. The innings never gained momentum as wickets kept falling at regular intervals.

Debutant Ashwani Kumar was the standout performer for MI, The 23-year-old delivered a stellar spell of 4/24 in just three overs. The left-arm seamer outfoxed Ajinkya Rahane and Rinku Singh before cleaning up Manish Pandey and Andre Russell.

His spell saw him surpass Amit Singh’s 3/9 against Punjab Kings in 2009 and set a new record for the best bowling figures on IPL debut by Indian bowler. Overall, he is the sixth bowler to take four wickets on IPL debut.

IPL 2025: MI’s Ashwani Kumar picks 4/24 on IPL debut, registers best bowling figures on IPL debut by an Indian bowler

Suyash Sharma sits third on the list with match figures of 3/9 against RCB in 2023. MI’s Vignesh Puthur (3/32) and Ashoke Dinda (2/9) complete the top five.

Top five best bowling figures on IPL debut by Indian bowlers:

• 1. Ashwani Kumar – 4/24, MI vs KKR, IPL 2025
• 2. Amit Singh – 3/9, RR vs KXIP, IPL 2009
• 3. Suyash Sharma – 3/30, KKR vs RCB, IPL 2023
• 4. Vignesh Puthur – 3/32, MI vs CSK, IPL 2025
• 5. Ashoke Dinda – 2/9, KKR vs RCB, IPL 2008

Overall, Ashwani’s 4/24 are fourth best bowling figures on debut in the IPL. West Indies fast bowler Alzarri Joseph holds the record for best bowling figures on IPL debut.

Top five best bowling figures on IPL debut:

1. Alzarri Joseph (MI) – 6/12 vs SRH, 2019
2. Andrew Tye (GL) – 5/17 vs RPS, 2017
3. Shoaib Akhtar (KKR) – 4/11 vs DD, 2008
4. Ashwani Kumar (MI) – 4/24 vs KKR, 2025
5. Kevon Cooper (RR) – 4/26 vs KXIP, 2012

At the time of writing, MI have begun their run chase and are 1/0 after the first over. Rohit Sharma (1) and Ryan Rickelton (0) are at the crease. Rohit will aim to break his run drought with a big knock today.

MI vs KKR: Playing XI of both teams:

MI: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Will Jacks, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Ashwani Kumar and Vignesh Puthur.

KKR: Quinton de Kock (wk), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh , Spencer Johnson, Harshit Rana and Varun Chakaravarthy.

For more updates, follow Khel Now Cricket on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.