For a long time, this has always been a debate in Indian cricket about choosing between two of their premier spin all-rounders, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. But the players of Australia have finally settled for the issue as they have given their verdict on who is tougher to face among these two.
Both of the spinners are known for their all-rounder skills of scoring runs in the lower order and showing their mystery and ability to get into the minds of the batters. For over a decade, they have been irreplaceable, as Australia has found out multiple times. Jadeja has contributed more with the bat, while Ashwin is ominous with his off-spin bowling performance.
The tactical brilliance is also something that has worked with the dismissals of various batters. The accuracy of Jadeja is incredible, while Ashwin has always reinvented him to dominate the batters in earning their wickets. All of these aspects have put the spectators on the edge of their seats in deciding the better between these two.
Australia scared of Ravichandran Ashwin in Test matches down under
The left-handed power-hitting batter of Australia, Travis Head, who has been in fabulous touch in the ongoing five-match series of the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, has picked Ashwin as the toughest bowler he has faced in the longest format of the game.
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“Probably for me, Ashwin, someone with a couple more tricks and being a lot taller and a lot quicker. Yeah, I think, he is probably the hardest.” The Adelaide-born batter reveals his view on the best spinner of India.
The Tamil Nadu spinner has picked up 115 wickets against Australia in 23 games at an average of under 29 in the red-ball format at a strike rate of around 63 with a best bowling figure of 7/103 in an inning. That’s the most wickets the veteran has picked against an opponent in Tests. Out of these, 40 wickets at 42.42 have come down under in 11 games.
The former captain for Australia, Steve Smith, praised Ashwin for his exceptional skills and also for the reason the latter offered mystery and smartness in the bowling.
“Ashwin has got me a few times here. I don’t reckon Jadeja has got me out here, but I think Ashwin, in these conditions, has just got great skills. Changes the way he bowls from surface to surface; he bowls what’s needed. He gets over the top of the ball when he needs to. Can come underneath the ball and reads the batter well, so yeah, I will go with Ashwin.” Smith gave his opinion.
The lanky pace bowler of Australia, Josh Hazlewood, has also recognized the skill of the 38-year-old, stating the spinner as ‘pretty crafty’ and being a left-hander, it becomes a nightmare in facing him.
The opening batter of Australia, Usman Khawaja, has described Ashwin as a ‘cagiest’ bowler for the latter’s impressive success for such a long time and how he has shown his brilliance on the field.
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“Jadeja has got a very good skill set. He is like a metronome. He just goes bang and bang, time and time again. You see, Ashwin is the cagiest. He is the one who is thinking out there. Every time I faced Ashwin, he was trying to think what I was doing, I was trying to think what he was trying to do.” The left-handed Pakistan-born added.
The young all-rounder of the side, Cameron Green, and Australia’s current premier spinner, Nathan Lyon, have admired both Ashwin and Jadeja, penning down that the bounce of the former and the consistency of the latter is their biggest weapons.