Tarish Bhatt
When India commence their knockout campaign in the World Cup, the form of Ravichandran Ashwin would be a key factor for the defending champions. The off-spinner have bagged 11 wickets, but the way he has dismissed batsmen is far more impressive.
The last match against Ireland was a perfect example how an off-spinner should bowl in shorter version of the game. The Chennai spinner bowled a tight outside the off-stump line, which is an ideal line of attack for an off-spinner.
By doing that, he stopped the flow of runs and, in bargain, got some wickets. Right from first game against Pakistan, Ashwin has been bowling well within himself and was mostly following the middle-leg line, which can possibly stop the flow of runs but can’t open all modes of dismissals.
Fortunately, Ashwin still got those nine wickets from first four matches of the competition. From here on, it would be interesting to see if Ashwin would stick to the traditional line of attack or try out a different line and length to restrict the oppositions.
The match against Zimbabwe will demonstrate a little bit on what is cooking in Ashwin’s mind. Meanwhile, former New Zealand skipper Stephen Fleming showered praises on Ashwin.
“I have always been impressed with Ashwin as he is such a good student of the game with great work ethic,” Fleming said. “Look at the manner in which he creates a new delivery. He loves the game, thinks very hard, he is in a way cricket tragic, statistically motivated.”
