'I didn't understand a thing': R Ashwin reveals being ‘surprised’ by Pakistan's 'tired collapse'
Ravichandran Ashwin said that he hadn't seen for a long time what happened in the first Test between Pakistan and Bangladesh in Rawalpindi.
Pakistan's defeat to Bangladesh in the first Test sent quite a few shockwaves around the cricketing world. It was the first time that Pakistan had lost a Test match to Bangladesh at home. Moreover, Bangladesh had never won any Test by 10 wickets before this, home or away.
In the days since Bangladesh opener Zakir Hassan hit the winning runs, Pakistan have copped a lot of criticism for their tactics at various levels. Their call to play four seamers and no spinners on a dry pitch has been called out while former cricketers like Rashid Latif questioned the medical and physio teams for the lack of pace from the fast bowlers.
India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has now admitted that he was surprised by the fact that Pakistan collapsed on a “road” of a pitch. “The match was in sleep mode for the first three days. Suddenly, Pakistan surprised me when I was about to catch a flight,” said Ashwin on his Youtube channel. "When I saw the highlights of the match, I understood one thing. The proper, tired collapse on a final day. I haven't seen that for a long time."
‘Teams don’t surrender on a pitch like this'
Ashwin said that teams don't collapse on pitches like the one that was rolled out in Rawalpindi. "Teams don't surrender on a pitch like this. In first-class cricket, strong teams will bat first and hit big. The wicket will be a batting wicket. In those two days, they will pull off an all-out in a tired state. When the wicket crumbles, they will get all out again. I got that depiction. There is nothing in the pitch. It's an absolute road," he said.
The veteran spinner said that he couldn't understand just what was happening in the match. “In fact, in the end, Rizwan was staging a fight. I didn't understand a thing. Naseem Shah played a shot and left cheaply. I didn't understand what just happened. I didn't understand a thing," he said.
