SA vs IND 2018: Ravichandran Ashwin is on Task of Practicing Leg-Spin Bowling

Updated - 22 Dec 2017, 03:52 PM

Ravichandran Ashwin, South Africa Vs India, Leg-spin, Jolly Rovers, VAP, Trophy, Chennai
Ravichandran Ashwin is expected to spring a surprise with the new variation. Photo Credit: BCCL.

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Ace off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is sweating it out in the nets – to work on his action which leg-spin bowlers used to rely on, and he is gearing up for the upcoming Test series against South Africa that is eventually scheduled to kick off on January 5, next year (2018) in the Cape Town.

It’s pertinent to mention, the 31-year-old Ashwin has all the experience on his back, and he knows what it takes to stay focused towards his game even when things seem to be challenging him.

Ravichandran Ashwin, South Africa Vs India, Leg-spin, Jolly Rovers, VAP, Trophy, Chennai
Ravichandran Ashwin has the knack of returning with a bang after going off-colour. Photo Credit: AFP.

(Read Also: India Vs Sri Lanka: Second T20I, Indore – Match Prediction)

The wily customer in the form of Ashwin is further working on the variations in a bid to contain the batsmen on the South African soil which is undoubtedly going to be an arduous task for the visiting side led by Virat Kohli.

With Ashwin already being overlooked in the limited-overs format owing to the emergence of leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and his wrist-spin partner Kuldeep Yadav, the Chennai-born bowler has further somewhat modelled his action which taking a leaf out of the book of former Team India coach and leg-spinner Anil Kumble to tackle with the difficult situations.

Pertinently while representing for the local club, Jolly Rovers in the VAP trophy fixture at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Ashwin sent down 36 leg-spin deliveries against Grand Slam in his nine overs which eventually saw him bagging two wickets after conceding 47 runs.

Ravichandran Ashwin, South Africa Vs India, Leg-spin, Jolly Rovers, VAP, Trophy, Chennai
Ravichandran Ashwin has been successful when it comes to the donning of whites. Photo Credit: BCCI.

It has further been observed that Ashwin was faced by the promising batsman of Gujarat based batsmen Bharghav Merai and Tamil Nadu’s Narayan Jagadeesan, who have been top-notch players in the first-class fold as both perished on his bowling.

While speaking about the bowling of Ashwin, the gloveman Jagadeesan has praised the senior campaigner for his approach towards the gentleman’s game while watching behind the stumps during the Ranji Trophy 2017-18 fixtures.

“I knew Ashwin was working on leg spin. But his accuracy is excellent,” Jagadeesan revealed it to the Times of India.

Earlier, Ashwin started off his spell with the first three overs of off-spin bowling before switching to his fresh ploy.

Ravichandran Ashwin, South Africa Vs India, Leg-spin, Jolly Rovers, VAP, Trophy, Chennai
Ravichandran Ashwin has been the go-to bowler for Virat Kohli. Photo Credit: BCCI.

In a bid to improve his line and length, Ashwin was accurate with the ball and has been spending quality time to work on his wrist-spin bowling.

“He bowled googlies and executed the faster one with good control. As a batsman, you can’t get away from him. His height is an advantage and he did generate bounce,” Jagadeesan maintained.

The 21-year-old youngster Jagadeesan reiterated Ashwin has discussed the leggies and bowled couple of leg-spin deliveries against Aditya Tare-led Mumbai and Andhra Pradesh.

“He was discussing about it during the Ranji nets. He did bowl the odd leggie against Andhra and Mumbai. I had kept wickets for him,” Jagadeesan remarked.

Ravichandran Ashwin, South Africa Vs India, Leg-spin, Jolly Rovers, VAP, Trophy, Chennai
Ravichandran Ashwin is the burgeoning example of success in Test format. Photo Credit: BCCI.

(Read Further: SA vs IND 2018: Graeme Smith Feels South African Bowlers Will Have an Edge Over the Indian Batsmen)

Owing to the variation, Ashwin has been working on leg-spin bowling since September early this year and is expected to be the rival for the youngsters who have already grabbed the headlines for their spectacular bowling show.

Interestingly, while opting for the wrist-spin bowling, Ashwin got the decent bounce off the surface, and it is expected to play a significant role when it comes to his height in the subcontinent conditions, as the Proteas does not have a good history of playing spin bowling well.

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