Live Score
Cricket Teams
Cricket Players
Ravichandran Ashwin still India’s No. 1 spinner, says Anil Kumble
Ravichandran Ashwin was part of the squad that travelled to West Indies for the recently concluded series but he did not get any match time with Ravindra Jadeja playing as the sole spin option.
Former India head coach Anil Kumble believes that Ravichandran Ashwin is still India’s top spinner and he should find a place in the national team for Test matches. Ashwin was part of the squad that travelled to West Indies for the recently concluded series but he did not get any match time with Ravindra Jadeja playing as the sole spin option. Kumble accepted that Ashwin had some injury concerns but maintained that he should be part of the squad.
READ: Anil Kumble makes massive prediction about Jasprit Bumrah’s future
“He is still the best spinner that you have,” Kumble said in an interview with cricketnext.com. “Yes, there have been a few incidents where he has had injuries and not performed to his potential, but Ashwin is your No. 1 spinner in the team. He should be a part of the squad, he should be in the playing XI, you have to make a way of getting him in.”
Kumble also pointed out Ashwin’s effectiveness as a batsman as the veteran averages nearly 30 in Test cricket with four tons and 11 half centuries. The former India coach added that both Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja should be added to the India side as they provide the much needed support to the lower-order batting.
READ: ‘For the team’s sake’: Kumble’s appeal to selectors over MS Dhoni’s future
“I strongly believe that the team certainly can have two spinners in the squad, because both Ashwin and Jadeja are wonderful batsmen. Ashwin has had four Test hundreds, Jadeja has been really consistent with the bat. He did that again in the West Indies, he’s a wonderful bowler too and both of them in tandem can certainly be handful for the opposition. So yes, when India travel outside, it’s not always that you get four bowlers to pick up 20 wickets,”
“Ideally, if you have a combination of three fast bowlers and two spinners, wherein your two spinners can also contribute with the bat, that’s the perfect scenario. And you have two front-line spinners who are equally good as batsmen, so I think it’s just a matter of time, I strongly believe that Ashwin will certainly make it into the playing XI. So, the management needs to look at that and I am a bit surprised that someone with the ability and quality of Ashwin is sitting out in a Test match,” he said.
