He’s been with me via thick and skinny: Ashwin dedicates five hundredth Test wicket to his father

Ravichandran Ashwin devoted his five hundredth Test wicket to his father. On Friday, he eliminated England opener Zak Crawley on the second day of the third Test to turn into solely the second Indian, after Anil Kumble, to the mark. “It’s been quite a long journey. Firstly, I’d like to dedicate this feat to my father. He’s been with me through thick and thin and probably has a heart attack every time he’s watched me play. His health has probably gone for a toss because of that,” Ashwin mentioned after stumps.

“I am an accidental spinner; I always wanted to be a batter,” he added.

England scored 207 for two in simply 35 overs, trailing India by 238 runs; Ben Duckett scored 133 of these. Earlier, India batted 45 overs within the first half of the day, including simply 119 runs to its in a single day 326 for five. On England’s strategy, Ashwin mentioned: “Throughout the series, they have managed to up the scoring rate. They’ve also exploited the inexperience of our batting order. Those two facets have stood out.

“I am not really flustered about my bowling. They are not hitting me in different areas. I’m very clear about the areas where I want them to take risks while bowling my best ball. Spinners are mostly bowling from the media end. I got a good spell going from the other end. Just need to keep creating opportunities. How we understand the game situation and bat in the third innings will dictate how this Test match pans out,” Ashwin mentioned.

Ashwin additionally praised Duckett for his impactful innings whereas ruing the truth that he didn’t get to have a crack at him early within the innings. “Duckett is a phenomenal talent in England. Credit to him. He has made a wonderful hundred. I wanted to clap, but the hardcore competitor in me didn’t allow me to clap. Very happy for him,” Ashwin mentioned with amusing.

“I would’ve really loved to bowl at him when he wasn’t batting 50-plus (smiles). A couple of shots he hit were really special, especially the slog sweeps. Nevertheless, come the next time, I will again try to take him on. That’s just who I am.”

About the situation of the pitch, Ashwin mentioned: “It’s a typical Rajkot pitch. The ball is turning very slowly. If the cracks don’t open up, it’ll still be a very good pitch to bat on.”

Earlier, 5 runs have been added to England’s complete after India copped a penalty when Ashwin walked down the protected space of the pitch whereas batting. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was already given a closing warning for operating down the pitch throughout his knock of 112. Talking concerning the incident, Ashwin mentioned: “My poor motor skills didn’t allow me to get off the pitch in time (laughs). It wasn’t on purpose. But if that’s how the English media wants to portray it, so be it.

“My spikes were really thin, wafer thin. And that pitch isn’t breaking. I went to umpires Kumar Dharmasena and Joel Wilson and said it was my poor motor skills. If I were any better, I would have been at the Olympics and not here playing cricket,” he added, with a hearty snicker.