Ace India spinner R Ashwin talked about various things as he gears up for a bumper 10-Test season. India is slated to play two Tests against Bangladesh and three against New Zealand at home.
India will then travel to Australia for a bumper five-Test series, the first one since 1992. This will also mark the first time the Indian team plays Test cricket under the guidance of new head coach Gautam Gambhir.
Gambhir took over from Rahul Dravid after India’s T20 World Cup win recently. His first series as head coach saw India winning the T20I series in Sri Lanka 3-0, but losing the ODI series 2-0 to the Islanders.
R Ashwin spoke on Gautam Gambhir and said that he is someone with whom he has also played a lot. Ashwin also admires him as one of the “heroes” of Indian cricket.
“Gautam is someone I still share a very, very good relationship with. Because he is a very straightforward and honest guy. I think Gautam is also one of those guys that we should always be backing. He’s a hero of Indian cricket,” Ashwin said in an interview with PTI.
The finest in the world have struggled to read his characteristic 'carrom ball', but Ashwin, who first watched Ajantha Mendis bowl it during a camp in Chennai, says it took him nearly three years to be comfortable with its execution.
For those unfamiliar, a carrom ball is a delivery that turns the other direction and is delivered with a flick of the middle finger. A right-hander will turn away from the bat.
“I started bowling those balls in the nets in 2006 or 2007 onwards, which was probably the second season for me in first-class cricket. It took me a good two years before I implemented it in the south zone leg matches of the Vijay Hazare Trophy (KS Subbaiah Pillai Trophy) in 2008. By 2010, I was probably pretty confident about the pace at which I bowled. So, it took about two to three years for me to gain confidence,” Ashwin revealed.
R Ashwin also stated that youngsters shouldn’t be blinded by the shine and glory of IPL and their first priority should always be playing for India.
“I am very glad that a lot of young kids are coming now and making a good amount of money. It is changing their livelihood, changing the status of their families. It’s unbelievable for India, for the Indian cricketing ecosystem. But I still feel there must be some incentive and some motivation for all these kids to want to play for India, and that’s absolutely in the hands of the stakeholders and the decision-makers,” Ashwin signed off.
(PTI inputs)
