Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar made the headlines once again on Sunday after his stance on India off-spinner R Ashwin initiated a debate on social media. During a discussion alongside former Australia captain Ian Chappell and former India cricketer Aakash Chopra, Manjrekar said that he has a "problem" with Ashwin being regarded as an "all-time great".
"When people start talking about him as being one of the all-time greats of the game then I have a few problems. One basic problem I have with Ashwin is that when you look at SENA countries, Ashwin doesn't have a single five-wicket haul there," Manjrekar had said on ESPNCricinfo.
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"And the other thing when you talk about him running through sides on Indian pitches that are suited to his kind of bowling is that in the last four years, Jadeja has matched him with wicket-taking abilities. Then, interestingly, in the last series against England, Axar Patel got more wickets than Ashwin on similar pitches. So that is my problem with accepting Ashwin as a real all-time great," he had added.
Manjrekar's remarks led to a debate on social media with several former players and fans expressing their opinions on the same.
{{/usCountry}}Manjrekar's remarks led to a debate on social media with several former players and fans expressing their opinions on the same.
{{/usCountry}}In response, the cricketer-turned-commentator, on Sunday, took to Twitter to explain his stance on Ashwin. Manjrekar said that an "all-time great" is the highest praise a player can achieve and in his opinion, Ashwin is not quite there yet.
"‘All- time great’ is the highest praise & acknowledgement given to a cricketer. Cricketers like Don Bradman, Sobers, Gavaskar, Tendulkar, Virat etc are all time greats in my book. With due respect, Ashwin not quite there as an all-time great yet," he wrote on Twitter with the hashtag #AllTimeGreatExplained.
Meanwhile, batsman Abhinav Mukund, on Sunday, said that he respectfully disagrees with Manjrekar's opinion and called Ashwin a legend.
"I read an article today where Sanjay Manjrekar said that 'I disagree that he is a legend of the game'. I have to respectfully disagree with Mr. Manjrekar and say he is a legend of the game because he holds several world records," Mukund told stand-up comedian Sorabh Pant on his YouTube channel 'Wake Up With Sorabh'.