IND vs SA: Ravichandran Ashwin's Away Performances Not 'In-Sync' With Home Performances, Says Sanjay Manjrekar
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar pointed out that the Indian off-spinner, Ravichandran Ashwin, does not have the same kind of impact on foreign pitches as compared to what he can do on Indian surfaces.
Ashwin’s participation in the 3-match Test series was mostly down to his batting, in which he thrived in a couple of innings but was mostly missing for the rest of the match.
Given the kind of surfaces prepared in South Africa and Australia, it’s quite understandable why Ashwin has a hard time.
“Ashwin has made two or three trips to Australia, New Zealand, England, and South Africa. And we’ve seen the kind of impact that he makes and it’s clearly not in sync with the kind of impression he makes on Indian pitches. It’s something that the Indian team understands,” Manjrekar said in a conversation with ESPNcricinfo.
Sanjay Manjrekar explains what Ashwin needed in the series
Although Ashwin did manage to pick up a couple of wickets in the second innings of the Centurion Test, he was mostly under-bowled. There was no help on any of the surfaces across three venues and his confidence would have likely taken a beating as well.
“What Ashwin really needed in this series was a captain who is a big fan of Ashwin, who wants to bowl him. Michael Clarke loved going to Nathan Lyon even when Mitchell Johnson and other guys were scaring the hell out of other batsmen.”
“Having said that, if you saw when Ashwin had to bowl that line needed on foreign pitches, I thought he was found wanting because he was not able to create any pressure outside off stump. All those limitations that Ashwin has come into play on foreign pitches,” Manjrekar added.
South Africa defeated India 2-1 to clinch the 3-match series and also maintain their unbeaten record against Virat Kohli and co.
