Former India captain Sourav Ganguly is convinced that seasoned spinner Ravichandran Ashwin “must play” in the Border Gavaskar Trophy series opener against Australia in Perth. After months of wait, India and Australia, two heavyweights in the world of Test cricket, will begin their fierce rivalry in Perth from Friday.
The pitch curator of the Optus Stadium, Isaac McDonald, has stated that there will be plenty of pace and bounce with 10 mm grass left on the deck. As a result, it is expected from both sides to field their best combination of pacers for the curtain raiser.
Amidst all these developments, the role of a traditional spinner becomes minimal. It is understandable that India might stick to Ravindra Jadeja for his all-rounding abilities, but former India skipper, Sourav Ganguly has warned India head coach Gautam Gambhir to not exclude Ravichandran Ashwin from the playing XI.
Ravichandran Ashwin’s Selection Still A Topic Of Debate
With last-minute injuries and the dwindling form of players in the Indian camp, the selection will be a headache for head coach Gautam Gambhir, especially after suffering a home series whitewash against New Zealand. Ravichandran Ashwin, who has been a reason for debate among former cricketers and fans for being sidelined in defining matches, including the World Test Champions finals in 2023, is again the talk of the town.
With a traditional Perth surface offering plenty of value to pacers, spinners have struggled to fish out advantages while hunting for wickets. In the presence of Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, the most probable scenario would be India fielding just one tweaker in the playing XI.
Ravichandran Ashwin had a rare slump on home conditions in red-ball cricket against the Kiwis. The crafty off-spinner’s fruitless endeavour was reflected in his failure to hit the double-digit mark in the wicket’s tally across the three Tests. While Sundar and Jadeja stood at the summit with 16 wickets a piece, Ravichandran Ashwin could only get nine for himself. Another striking factor in Ravichandran Ashwin’s performance was his failure to churn out wickets in the first and the third Tests.
On two occasions, he went wicketless, including the second innings of the series opener and the first innings of the final Test at Wankhede. Despite his woes, Ganguly banked on Ravichandran Ashwin to make it into the playing XI because the veteran stands as India’s “best spinner.”
Former Legendary Captain Sourav Ganguly Backs Ravichandran Ashwin to play in the 1st Test at Perth
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly reckons that the visitors must include Ravichandran Ashwin in the playing XI for the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 Test in Perth. Agreeing that Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar are good with the bat, Ganguly opined that Ashwin must play not only since he is India’s best spinner, but also due to the number of left-handers in the Australian team.
Ravichandran Ashwin, Jadeja and Sundar are the three spin bowling options in the Indian team for the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The selectors dropped Axar Patel in favor of Sundar after the latter impressed in the home series against New Zealand.
India have been backing Jadeja over Ravichandran Ashwin in overseas Tests in recent years, but Ganguly wants things to change in Perth. In an interview to Revsportz, he opined:
“There is no debate, Ashwin must play. Your best spinner must play. In Test cricket, play specialists. Also, against the number of left-handers in the Australian line-up, Ashwin is certain to have impact.
“Yes, there is [Ravindra] Jadeja and Washington [Sundar] and both bat well, but you must go in with your best spinner in the first Test. Play with specialist batsmen and bowlers, and that’s where Ashwin is my choice,” the 52-year-old added.
Ravichandran Ashwin (38) has played 10 Tests in Australia and has claimed 39 wickets at an average of 42.15, with a best of 4-55. As for Jadeja, he has picked up 14 scalps in four Tests, averaging 21.78, with a best of 4-62.
Rohit Sharma is set to miss the first Test as he welcomed his second child recently and requested BCCI to join the team after the first Test. In his absence, vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah is primed to lead the side on November 22. Moreover, a record 85,000 plus spectators are bracing to watch the game live at Optus Stadium on Day 1.