Ravi Ashwin being underutilized by Rohit Sharma in India’s loss to New Zealand in the 1st Test in Bengaluru was criticized by former India cricketer Aakash Chopra. New Zealand won their first Test in India since 1988, after a period of 36 years.
New Zealand shocked India in the first Test in Bengaluru, winning in India for the first time in 36 years. It all started with a miscalculation by India skipper Rohit Sharma, who won the toss and decided to bat first despite the rain and cloudy conditions.
India was thrashed for 46 in their first innings after skipper Rohit Sharma erred by winning the toss and opting to bat first on day two after day one was washed out by rain. Matt Henry, with five wickets, and Will O’Rourke, with four, ripped through Indian batting. KL Rahul made a duck in the first innings.
In response, Devon Conway (91), Rachin Ravindra (134), and Tim Southee (65) helped New Zealand score 402. In the second innings, India scored 462 runs, with 150 from Sarfaraz Khan and 99 from Rishabh Pant. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma also struck 50s. KL Rahul made 12 runs in the second innings.
With 107 runs to win, New Zealand completed the mark with 8 wickets in hand, their first Test victory in India since 1988.
“We didn’t get Ashwin to bowl at all”- Aakash Chopra slams Rohit Sharma’s captaincy
Aakash Chopra questioned Ravichandran Ashwin’s use by India captain Rohit Sharma during New Zealand’s second innings of the first Test in Bengaluru. He pointed out that the off-spinner was rarely employed, despite being a powerful weapon, particularly against left-handers.
In a video uploaded to his YouTube account, ‘Aakash Chopra,’ he expressed amazement at Rohit’s use of Ashwin.
“No doubt the runs were less but we didn’t get Ashwin to bowl at all. I am not saying we would have won the match if Ashwin had bowled but we didn’t get him to bowl. That was surprising and how. Why was Ashwin not bowled? I don’t have an answer for that because if you see his numbers, he is your team’s best bowler. No one has taken more wickets than him in Test matches. Left-handers were playing but you still didn’t get him to bowl. It was not understandable at all,” Chopra reasoned.
Ashwin was introduced into the attack in the 25th over when New Zealand needed just 10 runs with eight wickets in hand. He went wicketless and conceded six runs in his two overs.
Ravi Ashwin was used as a fifth bowler by Rohit Sharma- Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra acknowledged that casting a long spell on Jasprit Bumrah was the right decision. However, he stated that Ravichandran Ashwin should have been introduced much earlier. The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the result was virtually decided before the wily spinner was given the ball.
“You still understand Bumrah’s long spell because only two wickets fell and he took both. However, Mohammed Siraj from the other end. Although he was bowling well with the new ball, when you stopped him, you could have got either Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) or Ashwin first, that’s fine, but you used Ashwin as the fifth option.
The match was over. There was no life left in the match. 15 or 20 runs were left and you called him to bowl. It would have been better if you hadn’t bowled him at all. This question should have been asked in the post-match press conference – ‘Rohit bhai, what did you do?’. I thought India definitely missed a trick and it is beyond my understanding why he wasn’t bowled,” Chopra observed.
The second Test between India and New Zealand will be played in Pune from October 24 onwards.
Also Read: Sanjay Manjrekar Openly Criticizes Rohit Sharma For Poor Tactics In 1st Test vs New Zealand