Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin wasn’t really impressed with the new SG Test ball despite taking his record 28th five-wicket-haul, in the second innings against England in the ongoing first Test of the four-match Test series against England at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Ashwin was the standout performer for India on Day 4 in Chennai, as he yet again proved why he is regarded as one of the best spinners in the world by scalping six wickets to help Team India dismiss England for 178 runs in their second innings on a deteriorating pitch at the Chepauk.
He got nine wickets in the ongoing Test match in Chennai but felt frustrated with the SG Test ball, as he called the ball “very bizarre” and even its stitches came off the seam and it went soft within 40 overs, saying he has never seen an SG Test ball's seam starting to peel off as it happened in Chennai.
Ashwin said after the end of Day 4 play, “This game the ball is pretty, I mean, it was very bizarre for us. Because I have never seen an SG ball tear (get torn) through the seam like that.”
He further added, “So it could well be a combination of how hard the pitch was on the first two days, even in the second innings after the 35th-40th over, the seam starting getting sort of peeled off.”
Notably, it is being said that the Meerut-based Sanspareils Greenlands (SG) had manufactured a fresh set of balls for the ongoing Test series between India and England with pronounced and enhanced (heightened) seam, darker color, and harder cork, but it seemed that the problems with the quality of the balls remain and Ashwin hopes to know the reasons for the same during the ongoing home series.
He signed off by saying, “It was bizarre, I mean, I haven't seen an SG ball like that in last so many years, but yeah, maybe it could be due to the pitch and the hardness of it through the center which is making the ball gets scuffed up. We will have an answer for it going through the series.”
(With PTI Inputs)
