India’s off-spinner R Ashwin discussed his bowling performance in the second innings of the Ranchi Test against England. He mentioned that when Rohit Sharma inquired about who would take the new ball, both he and Ravindra Jadeja volunteered to do so.
R Ashwin was the main reason India dismissed England for only 145 runs in the second innings. He started well with the new ball, taking crucial wickets early on. First, he got rid of Ben Duckett for 15 runs, then Ollie Pope for a duck, and later sent Joe Root back to the pavilion for just 11 runs, claiming three wickets quickly.
R Ashwin Made A Hilarious Remark
Ashwin continued his impressive performance by taking two more wickets in his second spell. He dismissed Ben Foakes and James Anderson to complete his 35th five-wicket haul in Test cricket. Ashwin expressed his happiness with bowling alongside the new ball, stating that it worked well for him. He also discussed using different bowling techniques when the pitch didn’t offer much turn. Ashwin said:
“You know me very well Ravi Bhai. Rohit said in the huddle – both of you are starting, who wants to start. I put my hand up and said I will start from this side. Glad (it paid off). I have got some sort of an attachment with the new ball and I enjoyed bowling a little bit more speed. Loved it once again. (On what he was relying on when there was not much turn on offer) I had to go back and rewire the game.”
He added: “I am someone who comes from the top and like the ball to drop on the pitch. Somehow when I come to the Eastern part of the country I find that there is not enough bite out of the surface. The bounce is literally around shin height if I can say that, so had to bowl a lot of side spin, had to hammer into the pitch for the first part of the spell and later from the other side I felt there was a little bit more purchase. Had to literally rewire and it’s a mental switch I had to make.”
Ashwin explained his decision not to bowl the carrom ball early, mentioning that he aimed to find his rhythm first to avoid conceding unnecessary runs. He then humorously praised Kuldeep Yadav, joking that Yadav “stole” the five-wicket haul from him. Ashwin added:
“For some strange reason my knee has been acting up. It just takes me 10-12 balls to warm up. I had a warmup before getting in as well. So once I got my length right that is when I wanted to try it (carrom ball) because I didn’t want to give away extra runs because we were chasing last, so every single run to chase is a big bonus. Phenomenal character (by the entire bowling unit).”
He added: “I thought Kuldeep bowled brilliantly. What I loved about Kuldeep today was the way he worked on his run-up, momentum and all that sort of stuff, We all know how much revs he can put on the ball, what skill he has got. The change of pace that changes the trajectory, which he is willing to do now… I think he double the bowler that he is. Really happy for him. I just stole the fifer away from him. That’s how the game goes.”
Ashwin on India’s Win
Ashwin expressed his excitement about the prospect of winning the match after four challenging days. He praised skipper Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal for their unbeaten partnership of 40 runs in the chase. As he approaches his 100th Test match in Dharamsala, Ashwin remarked that he has cherished every moment with the team. He said:
“We batted almost until Lunch, if we had given up even 70-80 runs, the thought when we went back to the hotel last night, we would have taken it with both hands. You can take all the wickets you want, you can perform every time, but the best thing to happen is when the team wins. That feeling is surreal when you win a Test match after 4 tough days.
“I’d like to have that feeling tomorrow. Rohit and Jaiswal have started really well, hopefully they’ll carry on tomorrow. Sunny bhai, you’re being too generous, thanks you so much (on the 500-wicket milestone). I’m definitely past all these things now, I’ve enjoyed every single moment of being with this team and the longer it lasts, I’ll be very happy,” he concluded.
