Once, leg-spinner Anil Kumble feared his international career might be over because of a shoulder injury.

He was out of the game for 20 months and then struggled to reclaim his Test place because Harbhajan Singh had burst onto the international the scene.

But ironically, a hand injury to Harbhajan allowed Kumble back in and he has gone on to become only the second Indian to take 400 Test wickets.

Kumble’s milestone, which arrived when he bowled Simon Katich for 81, came at his home ground in Bangalore, just as his 300th wicket had against England in 2001.

The normally modest Kumble was understandably ecstatic at his achievement.

And the 33-year-old’s next goal, to become India’s all-time leading wicket-taker, is not too far away.

Kapil Dev currently holds the record with 434 scalps from 131 Tests and assuming he avoids further injury problems, Kumble should pass the 1983 World Cup-winning skipper some time next year.

"When you get to 399, you obviously start thinking of 400.

"But my focus was on breaking what turned out to be a good partnership for Australia and finally I managed to do that.

"My next target is to get to Kapil’s Indian Test record."

Kapil used to hold the world record but was overhauled first by Courtney Walsh and more recently by Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne.

Muralitharan’s 532 Test wickets is the new bench mark, but he is out of the game at the moment having undergone shoulder surgery.

Kumble knows only too well what it is like to miss a chunk of your career through injury.

But he is living proof that a second coming is just as sweet as the first.

Although it took time for him to regain his zip after missing most of 2000 and 2001, once back in form he has confirmed his status as India's number one spinner.

Earlier this year, he took eight wickets in the final Test as India claimed their first ever Test win in Pakistan.

And Kumble was also potent when they toured Australia late last year, claiming 24 wickets in the series.

It was in February 1999 that Kumble confirmed himself as the natural heir of India’s spin bowling greats, Bedi, Chandrasekhar, Prasanna and Venkat by taking all 10 wickets in an innings against Pakistan in Delhi.

He was modest about his achievement in emulating England’s Jim Laker.

"As a bowler, everybody dreams of getting 10 wickets. My mum, whenever I go to see her, says ‘Get a hat-trick, get a hat-trick’, the next time it will be ‘Get 10 wickets’," he joked.

Kumble’s shoulder problems in 2000-2001 were no laughing matter, however, and it took time, following his comeback in South Africa, to regain the zip and confidence he had exhibited in the past.

He has achieved lasting success without developing a large number of ‘mystery’ balls and simply alternates between the top-spinner and the more conventional leg-break which spins away from the bat.

What is unique about him is that he bowls much quicker than most other spinners.

Add in his height and the bounce that he generates, plus his accuracy and stamina, and you have the recipe for success.

Kumble admitted: "It’s been a long hard career...it took a lot of overs to get to 400."

He is still relatively young for a spinner at 34 - and there could be a lot more overs still to come.

August 1990: 1st Test wicket, England’s Allan Lamb at Old Trafford

October 1995: 100th victim in 21st Test, New Zealand’s Martin Crowe

October 1998: 200th victim in 47th Test, Zimbabwe’s Pommie Mbangwa

December 2001: 300th victim in 66th Test, England’s Matthew Hoggard