India couldn’t have asked for a better way to start the series against Sri Lanka. The only thing that went against India was the toss and looking at the wicket and previous history it was never a good toss to lose. But by the end of the day’s play India are in a commanding position. And that’s largely due to their bowling commander R. Ashwin.
This is Ashwin’s second consecutive five wicket haul in Test cricket. His figures of 6 for 46, best by Indian in Sri Lanka, have opened the doors for India.
“I think I have done it before. Anyways I am very happy to do it on a
consecutive basis. I want to move ahead and do better for the team. It’s an extraordinary
performance to bowl out a team in a day especially in Sri Lankan conditions after having lost the toss,” said Ashwin.
Last six months have seen the best of R. Ashwin. He virtually rediscovered himself to become one of the most potent threats in the armory of Virat Kohli. All this hasn’t happened without due efforts and support from the people who have worked closely with him. “Ravi Shastri is a very positive influence on the team. When I was not
playing in Australia he came to me and told me why I was not playing. He tried to talk to me about things he experienced when he was in
Australia. That's where it took off. I am someone who likes talking
cricket and discussing cricket.
And with him around he is
someone who enjoys the same pattern. When we talk and discuss a lot new opportunities open up to try a few things and the improvement has
already started. A lot of credit needs to go to Bharat Arun as well,“ he added.
Most of the credit goes to the man himself who has dug deep to figure out the best in him. “And lot of credit needs to go to Ravichandran Ashwin as well. Because
I have taken stock of my own bowling, being a lot critical of myself, raised a lot of questions and got fruitful answers from both of them
which has actually enabled me to try and discover myself. I think
nothing is a permanent feat in life. Nothing is somewhere you start
stagnating. I think you have to keep improving.”
Has it something to do with the presence of another off spinner in the team and the competition this creates, Ashwin begs to differ. “As I said this question keeps rising again and again. I would like to
put an end to it. As far as I am concerned, I compete with myself.
Harbhajan Singh is a legend of Indian cricket and we need to respect that
and let him be in his space. For all you know he might well come up
and do well in the next innings. He didn’t get enough opportunities
here but I don’t see anyone as competition.”
The recent tour of Australia was a pivotal point in Ashwin’s career. This time he went back to Australia with bitter memoires of 2011 and the experiences that made him more aware and conscious of his game. “When I went back to
Australia I wanted to put back my experience to the best of use. When
I went in 2011, I was that youngster who wanted to get five wickets on
the first day of the Melbourne Test. That was the mistake I did. But I
aspired to be one and I would rather err on the aggressive side. I
wanted to go back to Australia with a set plan, be ready and
consistent, and use my pace, vary it, be a little quicker. I had a lot of experience to draw from. Which would suit me
best. Once I had done that I was pretty effective in Australia and
from thereon I wanted to see how effectively I can make it work. From then I wanted to take it forward
and improve it every single day.
First session on the first day of the Galle Test had actually set the tone for India. New, hard ball and little dampness on the wicket helped India to make early inroads and Ashwin made most of the conditions. “I thought the wicket was really tacky in the morning and it was just deviating enough. There was not as much of fizz and bounce in the wicket.”
There is old saying in spin bowling. Just master your stock delievery and entire cricketing world will be on your feet. In last six months Ashwin has done just that. He has worked on the craft of off-spin and results are ominous.
