Cricketer-turned-commentator Simon Doull has slammed the critics who don't acknowledge India spinner R Ashwin's achievements in Test. The off-spinner has been very successful in his Test career, but the critics don't rate him very highly due to his overseas record.

Doull backed the off-spinner with Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik on Cricbuzz. He asked, "why can’t we celebrate a guy who is a great bowler?", and added that the discussion on his record at home is an unfair metric to judge him.

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“Lot of people talk about Ashwin and how dominant he is at home. But there are so many bowlers around the world who have been in that exact place. Yes, his record away isn’t as good but so is the case with so many other bowlers as well. People try and find defects in numbers that suit their narrative. Why can’t we just celebrate a guy who is a great bowler?”

“We have all had bowlers who have dominated at home. If you look at seam bowlers in New Zealand, they have dominated at home but haven’t been as good away. It is just part and parcel of the game we play,” Doull said. 

Ashwin recently surpassed India's greats Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh in taking 50 wickets in a calendar year for the most number of times (4). He had also left Harbhajan behind in the overall wickets tally to become the third-highest wicket-taker in the longest format for India.

The off-spinner was awarded Player of the Series award for his 14 wickets in the two-match Test series against New Zealand. 

(With Cricbuzz Inputs)