Rashid Khan overtakes Tim Southee to create world record; Becomes highest wicket-taker in T20I cricket

Rashid Khan achieved the milestone during the ongoing UAE T20I Tri-series.

Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan has created a world record as he has become the highest wicket-taker in T20I cricket. The Afghanistan T20I skipper has overtaken former New Zealand bowler Tim Southee at the top of the list of highest wicket-takers in the format. The wrist spinner achieved the milestone during the ongoing UAE T20I Tri-series 2025.

Afghanistan are locking horns with Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the tri-series. During the third match of the series against UAE on September 1, Rashid clinched a three-wicket haul. With his three wickets in the game, he now has 165 wickets in T20Is.

Former New Zealand pacer Tim Southee had scalped 164 wickets in his career and now holds the second spot in the list of bowlers with most wickets in T20I cricket. Next on the list of bowlers with most T20I wickets are Ish Sodhi of New Zealand and Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman with 150, 149 and 142 wickets respectively.

Top 5 highest wicket-takers in T20I cricket

1. Rashid Khan – 165
2. Tim Southee – 164
3. Ish Sodhi – 150
4. Shakib Al Hasan – 149
5. Mustafizur Rahman – 142

Rashid is one of the dangerous spinners in the shortest format. So far, he has played 98 T20Is and picked 165 scalps at an average of 13.75 and an economy of just 6.08.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan lost their opening game of the series against Pakistan by 39 runs. Later, they crushed the hosts by 38 runs in their second encounter. They will be next seen in action against Pakistan on Tuesday.

Notably, Rashid will lead Afghanistan in Asia Cup 2025, which will start on September 9. Afghanistan are placed in Group B in the tournament alongside Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Hong Kong. They will play the tournament opener against Hong Kong on September 9 in Abu Dhabi.

India, Pakistan, UAE, and Oman are the other four teams who will participate in the tournament. Notably, only two teams from each group will qualify for the Super Four round. Hence, Afghanistan will have to outplay strong opponents like Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in the group stage.

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