Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin don't let batters breathe, says Anil Kumble

Former Indian skipper Anil Kumble has praised the combination of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja saying that the duo don’t let the batters breathe. The two bowlers completed 500 wickets together in Test cricket during the first Test between India and England which is being played in Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium. Ashwin and Jadeja have been at their vintage best against England in the first Test.

While Ravindra Jadeja has picked only one wicket in the second innings, R Ashwin has already got two scalps which includes one of the England skipper Ben Stokes. The duo bagged three wickets each in the first innings to restrict England to 246. Ravindra Jadeja also showed why he is the No.1 Test all-rounder as he played an 87-run knock taking India past the 400-run mark. India has lost only four matches when the pair of Ashwin and Jadeja play together, winning a whopping 35, losing four, and drawing 10 games.

Anil Kumble called their combination incredible. Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja went past him and Harbhajan Singh to become the most successful Test bowling pair for India. “The pressure on these two spinners right from the first Test when they came together to the 41st has not changed, and to have been through those pressure moments and come out with match-winning performances, either by Ashwin or Jadeja or both is incredible,” said Kumble.

“Sometimes both of them have picked up five-fers. If someone has picked up five in the first, then the other guy picks five in the second, and to consistently do that for 40 games and ensure that your team wins 30 times out of that is incredible,” Kumble added.

The former Indian spinner said that Ashwin and Jadeja do not let the batters breathe since they keep attacking the opposition. Ravichandran Ashwin has 494 Test wickets to his name, while Ravindra Jadeja has claimed 278 wickets in Tests. “These two are brilliant. And it’s not easy for a batter to just breathe even for one ball, because these two are constantly at you. And the best thing about spin bowling and about Indian conditions is these two can go on,” Kumble said.

Ravindra Jadeja And Ravichandran Ashwin Bagged 508 Wickets As A Pair In Tests

Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin started the match with 499 wickets together as a pair and they have added nine more scalps together in this match as of now to beat Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh to the record. The spin-duo have worked their magic a lot of times and have been great with the red ball for India and have taken the most wickets as a pair in Test cricket for India.

India has not been defeated in a home Test series since 2012 when England last defeated the hosts by 2-1. They have won 16 consecutive Test series at home and are looking to extend it to 17 by winning this series against England. The Three Lions have put up a fight in the first Test match as Ollie Pope is going strong against India after he completed his fifth Test century.