Contrary to the popular belief that Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin can only prosper on turning pitches, former Sri Lanka and Bangladesh coach Dav Whatmore is confident that the spinner can bowl well in all conditions. The spinner has been performing brilliantly and he continued his superb form in the recently concluded Test series against New Zealand where his 27 wickets in three matches helped the Indian team to whitewash the Kiwis.
The bowler has always been criticised for failing to replicate his form of Indian pitches in overseas pitches. But the bowler’s performance on the West Indies tour has somewhat shut the critics. Ashwin took 17 wickets on the tour.
Calling him an asset to the Indian team, Whatmore said that Ashwin’s contribution with the bat is also very important for the team.
Talking to the Times of India, Whatmore said:” Ashwin –to me –is an extremely valuable player and will invariably do well in conditions outside too. I felt he bowled brilliantly in Australia when they toured there in the 2014-15 season, and hasn’t looked back since. It’s not just about Ashwin’s bowling but his batting as well which has been a talking point. He is an asset to this Indian side.”
The teams which have visited have India in the last few years have been thrashed badly. Before New Zealand’s 3-0 loss, Australia and South Africa lost 4-0 and 3-0 respectively. Australia also struggled in the Test series in Sri Lanka earlier this year where they were whitewashed 3-0.
When Whatmore was asked about it, he said:” Playing spin in India is incredibly difficult. Understanding the ball’s behaviour, the heat and with fielders all around you -it can be daunting. In recent times, the only team to beat India has been England during the 2012-13 Test series.
That result surprised me but Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen played brilliantly, and –may be –they were more aggressive than the other teams that have toured India of late.
The only way you will get better (in these conditions) is by playing more and more here. Tournaments such as IPL have certainly helped players from outside the sub-continent to adapt to the conditions here. It’s not tough for the batsmen alone, even spinners must learn how to bowl on these tracks. Look at the way R Ashwin bowled. He was just phenomenal, he added.
Virat Kohli tasted his first major success on international stage under Whatmore, when under his coaching Kohli led the Indian team to glory in the U-19 World Cup in 2008.
When asked to express his views on Kohli’s meteoric rise both as a player and a captain, Whatmore said: “The word to describe Virat is ‘focus’. Look at the way he dropped his weight, worked on his fitness and became stronger – which is not an easy thing to do. The thing that struck me about that U-19 World Cup campaign (in Malaysia) was the confidence Virat had in himself and he always led by example. He has always remained aggressive and you can see that in his eyes. He is always hungry to perform and that’s rubbed off on his teammates as well.”