Last Update on: June 16th, 2023 at 10:40 am
Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin opened up about his omission from the Indian XI for the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) Final. He said that he would’ve loved to be part of the team because he played a great part in them reaching the final.
India suffered a daunting loss against Australia in the final of the ICC World Test Championship Final. They were handed a 209-run defeat as they weren’t up to the mark on all five days of the game. They were criticised a lot for their selection as they dropped Ravichandran Ashwin.
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Ravichandran Ashwin, who is currently the No.1 ranked bowler in the ICC rankings, was dropped from the team because of the team combination as they went in with four seamers. The decision was criticised by many as they felt that he could have turned the game on his head.
With the number of left-handers in the Australia team and the kind of surface it became after the first day, it’s safe to say that Ravichandran Ashwin might have set the stage on fire. Also, Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon along with Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja played a huge part in the game and picked wickets, which invited even more criticism.
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Ravichandran Ashwin said that of late he has been bowling fantastically well in overseas conditions and has won games for his team. But he will defend the team’s decision to drop him as they considered the combination which helped them draw the Test series in England last year. Speaking to Indian Express, he said:
“It’s a hard question to answer, right? Because we are standing right after the WTC Final. I would have loved to play because I have played a part in us getting there. Even in the last final I got four wickets and bowled really well. Ever since 2018-19, my bowling overseas has been fantastic and I have managed to win games for the team. I am looking at it as a captain or coach and I’m just talking in hindsight, in their defence.
“So the last time when we were in England, it was 2-2 with a drawn Test and they would have felt 4 pacers and 1 spinner is the combination in England. That is what they might have thought going into the final. The problem is for a spinner to come into play, it must be the fourth innings. The fourth innings is a very crucial facet and for us to be able to put that amount of runs so the spinner can come into play, it’s completely a mindset thing.”
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R Ashwin further went on to say that getting dropped from the XI is not a setback for him as he has been through this. He positively took the decision, saying that such things are important as it helps to bounce back. He said:
“For me, it’s not a setback. It’s just a stumbling block, I’ll move on because I have gone through that. When somebody knocks you down for the first time, you have a knee-jerk reaction.
“I think you should be knocked down once in a while along your life so that you are used to it and will know how to bounce back. That’s what life is. Whether you are at your peak or not, it is still a setback. The fact that you need to learn how to deal with it is very important.”
After reaching India following the ICC WTC Final, Ravichandran Ashwin joined Dindigul Dragons in the Tamil Nadu Premier League in Coimbatore and performed exceptionally well in the first game.
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