NEW DELHI: As the dates of the India vs Australia series are getting closer, the excitement amongst fans is soaring high. As these matches have always provided much of high end drama, there have been bowlers who have thrived under pressure and performed brilliantly.

Bowling against high quality batters, as these teams always consist of, is never easy. There have been champions who have upped their game in such games and performed magnificently.

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This time around, both teams have bowlers who are looking to establish themselves and make a name for themselves, and the stage couldn't get any better.

Let's take a look at the list of bowlers who have taken the most number of wickets when they have faced each other in ODI cricket:

1. Brett Lee:
Innings - 30
Wickets - 55
Average - 21
BBI - 5/27

One of the fastest bowlers to take, Brett Lee was a menace especially in ODI cricket. He always had a knack of taking wickets and performed brilliantly in not so helpful pitches in India. His best performance came in the year 2000, when he took 5 wickets for 27 runs at Adelaide.

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2. Kapil Dev:
Innings - 39
Wickets - 45
Average - 27.68
BBI - 5/43

Possibly the greatest all-rounder to have played for India, Kapil Dev in his prime was a magician with the ball. A man of big moments, he liked performing against the mighty aussie and took a total of 45 scales against them. The Haryana Hurricane's best effort against them came when he took 5 wickets while conceding 43 runs in the 1983 World Cup game. However India couldn't win that game.

3. Mitchell Johnson:
Innings - 26
Wickets - 43
Average - 25.06
BBI - 5/26

The tearaway quick from Australia, Johnson was a box-office in ODI cricket all through his career. As he always had the knack of getting wickets in crucial moments, Johnson always came up good against India. He took 43 wickets against India. His most important spell was probably in the semifinals of 2015 World Cup, when he dismissed both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the same innings and killed India's hope of winning the World Cup.

4. Steve Waugh:
Innings - 37
Wickets - 43
Average - 29.46
BBI - 4/40

Arguably the greatest ever captain in the history of cricket, Steve Waugh the bowler is a surprise inclusion in this list. Waugh was a handy bowler in the shorter format and he took plenty of wickets against India. A clever medium pacer, his best performance was when he took 4 wickets while conceding 40 runs back in 1998 at Sharjah.

5. Mohammed Shami:
Innings - 25
Wickets - 42
Average - 30.85
BBI - 5/51

The king of seam bowling, and an artist with the ball, Shami has been brilliant in the ODIs. Similarly he has always stepped up playing against Australia and has picked 42 wickets against them. Though the average is a bit on the higher side, he has picked many wickets. Currently out of the Indian team, his best figures against Australia came in the 2023 ODI World Cup game. He secured a figure of 5/51 at Mohali.