- Millions of Indians invested in the fortune of the cricket team would be nodding in agreement while pursuing the subject tagline about consistent performers like Ravichandran Ashwin. Undoubtedly, Ravi Ashwin can be termed as an outstanding allrounder delivering with regularity whenever the chips are down while representing Team India. It’s worth reiterating that Ashwin is more renowned for his off-spinning capabilities rather than batting exploits on the field. Nonetheless, he has proved beyond doubt time and again how capable his batting exploits are when the team needs it most. The cricketer is blessed with a lazy elegance while batting and as such, is a delight to watch when in full flow. True connoisseurs would vouch for it.
PC: The Hindu
- The Chennai man proved it again in the recently concluded first Test against the visiting Bangladesh at his home ground. Batting first, Team India was in a spot of bother losing six wickets for 144 in the first innings. The visiting team’s fast bowlers had wreaked the famed top-order Indian batting order on a juicy pitch with moisture. No sooner than Ashwin walked into bat with that confident gait and started scoring runs, the dressing room probably started to relax a bit. In the company of the other remarkable allrounder Ravindra Jadeja, Ashwin forged a winning partnership of 199 crucial runs that changed the complex of the game altogether. The fluency with which the two all-rounders went about scoring runs was a treat to watch.
- As the boundaries and sixers flowed with such panache from the two batters who showcased their exceptional skills, Team India scored 376 in the first innings which was good enough to put the Bangladeshi batters under pressure. Unsurprisingly, the visitors folded up for a paltry 146 on the back of some scintillating bowling from the Indian pacers led by the indomitable Jasprit Bumrah alongside Mohammad Siraj and Akash Deep. Without enforcing the follow-on, Team India batted to score a healthy 287/4d with Shubhman Gill and Rishabh Pant scoring fabulous centuries. Coming from a horrendous accident that would have curtailed his professional career, Pant’s form with both bat and the gloves would have warmed the cockles of Team India mandarins. Period.
PC: The Quint
- Now what followed in the second innings of Bangladesh is the familiar tale. Ashwin was in the thick of things by scalping six wickets on a track which was still good for the batters. In doing so, Ashwin equalled the great Shane Warne with 37 five-wicket hauls with Muralitharan way ahead at 67. Ashwin has achieved the rare distinction of scoring hundreds and five wickets for the fourth time now. What a world-class cricketer and servant of Indian cricket Ashwin has been over the last 13 years or so. He has been a fantastic performer delivering consistently for the team, especially in home conditions, besting the best in the business. Hopefully, he will continue to serve Team India’s cause in tests in the coming years too.
