Former India cricketer R. Ashwin has stated that the current lot of Indian T20I batters are so used to playing on flat surfaces in the Indian Premier League (IPL) that they will be troubled if the pitch is not placid and supports bowlers.
His words came after Japan bowlers troubled star India batters in the recent one-off historic T20I. Rain reduced the game to 5 overs per side, and India barely made 32/4 with Shreyas Iyer making 16 runs. In response, Japan took the chase to the very last over and lost by only 2 runs, as Indian bowlers held their nerves.
The in-form Indian top order of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, and Ishan Kishan failed to adapt to the conditions against the Japanese spinners.
Ashwin noted that the opposition think tank will now deliberately prepare slow and turning tracks for big-hitting Indian batters to stop them from dominating.
"I thought India would make 50 or 60 runs. If I am following Indian cricket from anywhere, I will give this Indian team a pitch where the ball will turn or where there will be lateral movement. I think this batting lineup will be troubled if the pitch is not placid. India is so used to playing IPL on placid pitches that if other teams start preparing different pitches, it could be really challenging for the Indian batting lineup. I asked all my teammates from Ireland during the ETPL what the plan against India was. They said that they did not want to give India free-flowing batting pitches," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
Ashwin further stated that five-over games should be something that should be considered going forward, as it brings emerging nations into the contest as well.
"I enjoyed watching the way the ball was spinning. I enjoyed that a lot as a spinner. I loved what Japan brought to the table. Get a shorter version of the game, like five or six overs, maybe for the Olympics. If the overs are fewer, then these smaller teams can also fight. So, I think that is a very exciting format," he suggested.
Japan, led by Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming, will feature in the Asian Games 2026, where India has directly qualified for the quarter-finals.
The suggestion that Ashwin's analysis of the adaptability of Indian batters to slow pitches could be used by the New Zealand team as part of their preparation for the series that lay ahead did not go down well with Ashwin.
"Am I the only one watching cricket? Aren't they also watching? New Zealanders are supposed to be the smartest cricketing team. They will make a pitch like this. They will give you pitches that will trouble you. In fact, it is not far-fetched that we will encounter pitches that spin even in SENA countries," he said.
India is set to tour New Zealand for an all-format series involving 2 tests, 5 T20Is, and 5 ODIs after the Asian Games 2026 campaign and home series against the West Indies.
