India’s all-format tour of West Indies came to an end on Sunday (August 13), with the visitors suffering a comprehensive eight-wicket defeat in the fifth and final T20I in Florida to concede the series 3-2.
Subsequently, the Hardik Pandya-led side received a lot of flak for losing the T20I series to the seventh-ranked West Indies side, which recently failed to qualify for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.
Amid the criticism, veteran spinner R Ashwin has come out in the defence of the young Indian team.
"There are plenty of positives from this T20I series. It is very easy to criticise the team on social media since they lost to a team that didn't qualify for the last T20 World Cup. They haven't qualified for the upcoming 50-over World Cup as well. I want to give a piece of information to you guys," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
The ace off-spinner feels the series was a learning experience for the youngsters who toured the Caribbean for the first time.
Notably, India handed debut caps to promising young batters like Yashasvi Jaiswal and Tilak Varma on the tour of West Indies. While Jaiswal featured in the Test and T20I series, Varma took part in the shortest format.
"I am not talking, backing, or supporting anybody. All of these are secondary. As a youngster, if you are going to the West Indies, there will be some challenges. In all countries, there will be some innate secrets. The local players know these things more than visiting players. Especially if the players are young. When I went to West Indies, England, Australia, I had to learn various little things...these are first-time experiences for me as a cricketer. So, youngsters would have learned a lot from this tour. They will definitely get better from here,” Ashwin stated.
“Losing the series 2-3 to West Indies...many of them are criticising and upset. It's okay and understandable. It's only fair, I guess. But we can see this loss from two perspectives. The players will get experience from this series," he further remarked.
India’s young team, led by Jasprit Bumrah, will next face Ireland in a three-match T20I series, starting August 18 in Dublin.
