One of the major positives from India’s tour of Sri Lanka so far has been the sparkling performance of R Ashwin, the off-spinner who has been skipper Virat Kohli’s most potent ammunition.
With 17 wickets in two matches, Ashwin has clearly been the best bowler in the series, providing breakthroughs whenever needed and proving a tough puzzle to crack for the Sri Lankans. A match-winner on home conditions, Ashwin, however, faced a peculiar situation last December in Adelaide, that has acted as catalyst to push for excellence.
Despite boarding the plane to Australia with the belief that he was the lead spinner, he was in for a shock when the team management decided to play rookie leg-spinner Karn Sharma instead of him. A constant feature in the side, barring when MS Dhoni preferred Ravindra Jadeja in a few away Tests, since his debut against the West Indies in November 2011, that axing pained Ashwin.
“When I was not playing in Australia, Ravi bhai (Ravi Shastri) came to me and told me why I was not playing. He gave me a bit of sympathy about why I am not playing. It is not generally something I look for. He has been a very positive influence. 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. Especially 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 (bowling coach) as well. 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,” Ashwin added.
Personal rediscovery
His personal rediscovery in Australia where even fellow pacers went for plenty of runs was superb. In the remaining three matches, he bagged 12 wickets, quite an achievement for spinners on the hard and bouncy tracks. He then claimed five wickets in the truncated one-off Test against Bangladesh and now in Sri Lanka he has been destructive.
Purchasing turn and bounce from two good tracks so far, Ashwin has been a thorn in Lanka’s flesh. His reliance more on his off-spinners combined with subtle variations has had even the great Kumar Sangakkara clueless, the retired great who fell victim to him all four times he batted. Ashwin felt his biggest asset has been the willingness to change, adapt and evolve with the passage of time.
Waves of change
“When I went to Australia 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 in an 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. What best suited me was what I wanted to take on board. I changed my action during IPL and then for a couple of years in one-day cricket.
“Having done that I had a lot of experience to draw from on 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. It was a more repeatable action. I spoke to Ravi Shastri and Bharat Arun who gave me confident answers. From then I wanted to take it forward and improve it every single day. As I said I don’t stagnate anywhere.”
Looking relaxed despite veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh and leg-spinner Amit Mishra — both on comeback trail — in the team, Ashwin is slowly becoming a bowler for all surfaces. Once pilloried by critics for not being as potent away as compared to Indian pitches, the off-spinner has offered proof over the last nine months of the lessons he has learnt while touring countries like South Africa, New Zealand, England and Australia. The guile in his craft has an added edge and so is the hunger to deliver.
Published 26 August 2015, 19:45 IST