Last Update on: June 11th, 2023 at 10:02 pm
Batting great Sachin Tendulkar lashed out at Team India for the exclusion of Ravichandran Ashwin following India’s massive 209 run-loss against Australia in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final at the Oval, England. He said that the off-spinner doesn’t need turning tracks to make an impact.
India suffered a thumping loss against Australia in the ICC WTC Final by a margin of 209 runs. It was a pretty ordinary display from them with both bat and ball as they didn’t play well and were outclassed by the opposition in all three departments.
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One of the talking points of the games was India’s decision to drop Ravichandran Ashwin ahead of the game. The off-spinner is currently the No.1 ranked bowler in the ICC rankings and played an instrumental role in his side reaching the final.
The decision was criticized by many as Ravichandran Ashwin could’ve proved vital for India, especially with the number of left-handers in the Australia team and the kind of surface it became after the first day. Skipper Rohit Sharma at the toss mentioned that it was a tough call for them to make but they had to do what was “best for the team” looking at the pitch and the overcast conditions.
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However, his decision backfired as Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon along with Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja played a huge part in the game and picked wickets. Had Ravichandran Ashwin been part of the team, it’s fair to say India would’ve had the upper hand in the game.
Sachin Tendulkar lauded Australia for their brilliant performance and said that stand between Steve Smith and Travis Head tilted the game in their favor. Taking to his Twitter account, he said:
“Congratulations to Team Australia on winning the #WTCFinal. @stevesmith49 and @travishead34 set a solid foundation on Day one itself to tilt the game in their favour. India had to bat big in the first innings to stay in the game, but they couldn’t.”
WTC Final: “I fail to understand the exclusion of Ravichandran Ashwin,” says Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar further went on to slam India for the exclusion of Ravichandran Ashwin. He pointed out that Australia had 5-6 left-handers in the team and highlighted that skillful bowlers like him don’t rely on turning tracks as he could’ve used drift in the air. He explained:
“There were some good moments for Team India, but I fail to understand the exclusion of @ashwinravi99 in the playing XI, who is currently the number one Test bowler in the world. Like I had mentioned before the match, skillful spinners don’t always rely on turning tracks, they use drift in the air and bounce off the surface to disguise their variations. Not to forget, Australia had 5 left-handers out of their top 8 batters.”
Congratulations to Team Australia on winning the #WTCFinal. @stevesmith49 and @travishead34 set a solid foundation on Day one itself to tilt the game in their favour. India had to bat big in the first innings to stay in the game, but they couldn’t. There were some good moments…
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) June 11, 2023
Virat Kohli | Rohit Sharma | Rishabh Pant | KL Rahul | Suryakumar Yadav | Sanju Samson | Shreyas Iyer | Yuzvendra Chahal | Jasprit Bumrah
