My Biggest Challenge With Ravichandran Ashwin Was That He Came Into Every Series With A Different Thinking: Sanjay Bangar

Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar has said that though his interactions with Ravichandran Ashwin were more about his batting, he also faced the challenge to keep the off-spinner from experimenting too much and keeping him focused.

Ashwin was one of the Indian team’s star performers in the recently concluded first Test against Sri Lanka. He first scored 61 runs with the bat and followed it up with six wickets across the visitors’ two innings of the Test match.

While discussing the match on Star Sports, Bangar shared his experience of working with the Tamil Nadu spinner.

He said: “He continuously thinks about his bowling. Mostly my discussions with him have not been about bowling but about batting. My biggest challenge with R Ashwin was that he came into every series with a different thinking or doing something different and then to get him back to his former self.”

Furthermore, Bangar highlighted that Ashwin has gone back to his old bowling action, bowling more side on than front on. He is known for trying new variations with his bowling.

“If we see the last two years, there was a time in between when he tried to bowl a lot with a front-on action, he had to use his body a lot more that time but here he was bowling absolutely side-on, the loading position was good, the way he started his career,” he said.

Ashwin has often been criticized by various cricket experts for not relying on his straight-off-spinners and resorting to other deliveries.

R Ashwin Relied More On His Stock Delivery – Sanjay Bangar

Bangar also analyzed Ashwin’s bowling in the first Test against Sri Lanka and revealed that the tweaker bowled more of his conventional stock delivery, rather than bowling variations.

“He relied more on his stock delivery and took the maximum wickets with that, he didn’t use the carrom ball or leg-spin much in this Test match.

“The more he relies on his conventional stock ball, he becomes all the more dangerous and causes a lot of problems for the batters. I feel if he continues bowling like this, it will be very difficult to bat against him and to score runs off his bowling,” Bangar concluded.

The second Test will be played in Bengaluru from March 12, which will be a day-night match at the M Chinnaswamy stadium.

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