While the Indian team is showing its prowess in Sri Lanka, the off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is sweating it out in the English County cricket. Ashwin had featured in the Test series against Sri Lanka but he was rested for the limited overs series and he made his way to play in England for Worcestershire.
Ashwin has been a daunting cricketer for India and has picked wickets at a rate better than anyone else in the game of cricket. But there has been a continuous criticism of his that he performs only on subcontinent pitches where the conditions are conducive to spin.
His performance went down considerably whenever India traveled to countries like England, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. To get a feel of such conditions, he opted to play in the County cricket.
In his debut match for Worcestershire against Gloucestershire, he came out with flying colors. While batting in the first innings, he made a useful contribution of 36 at No.6 as his side scored 363. Then, he bagged 3 wickets for 94 in the first innings to make an inspiring start as the opposition was halted to 295.
Ashwin’s 3 wickets in the first innings
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ bowling from @ashwinravi99!
5/68 on the @BCCI spin wizard's @WorcsCCC debut 🌪 pic.twitter.com/ggWX7FISx1
— Vitality County Championship (@CountyChamp) August 31, 2017
The right-hander again made a handy contribution with the bat and scored 28 off 30 balls. Worcestershire declared the innings for 295/8 giving Gloucestershire a stiff target of 401. Ashwin was then at his usual best as he picked a five wicket haul in the fourth innings. He ended with figures of 68/5 as the opponents were bundled out for 211 giving Worcestershire a victory by 189 runs.
Ashwin’s 5 wickets in the second innings
ICYMI India international @ashwinravi99 took 3 wickets on his County Championship debut 👌 pic.twitter.com/LQzfMKWnRa
— Vitality County Championship (@CountyChamp) August 30, 2017
It was the perfect start for the 30-year-old and his performance will surely give huge confidence for the future overseas tours. Now Ravichandran Ashwin will be up against his Indian teammate Cheteshwar Pujara as Worcestershire next plays Nottinghamshire in a match that starts on September 5.
