'I'll personally message you' - Arshdeep Singh apologises to R Ashwin after naming his top five bowlers

Arshdeep Singh has named his top five bowlers, placing Ravichandran Ashwin at number five. The India pacer ranked Bhuvneshwar Kumar at the top, followed by Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal. Ashwin's placement at the final spot prompted Arshdeep to apologise to the veteran spinner.

Arshdeep explained his reasoning for each selection, beginning with his personal preference for Bhuvneshwar Kumar among fast bowlers. He highlighted Shami's ability to seam the ball on any surface and his skill in presenting the seam. Kuldeep Yadav earned the third position for his rare left-arm Chinaman bowling skill set, while Yuzvendra Chahal, his teammate at Punjab Kings, secured fourth place based on his excellent record and high wicket-taking ability.

"Bhuvi bhai is at the top because he is my personal favourite as well. I really like him, so I’m a little biased. I’ll rate all the fast bowlers first. At number two, I’d go with Shami bhai because, as you know, he can seam the ball on any wicket. His bowling is excellent, and he presents the seam perfectly," Arshdeep said on Krishnank Atrey’s YouTube channel.

Why Arshdeep ranked Ashwin at number five

Arshdeep kept the famous 'Kul-Cha' duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal in his top five. While Kuldeep secured the third position, Chahal slotted in at No. 4. The left-arm seamer apologised to Ravichandran Ashwin, his former Punjab Kings captain, for keeping him at No. 5.

"Third would be Kuldeep Yadav because he has a very rare skill set, a left-arm Chinaman. Then there's Yuzi bhai, as we are teammates in the Punjab team, and his record is also excellent. He has taken so many wickets." Arshdeep said.

"I wouldn't want to rate Ash bhai last, but there were no positions left, so he comes in at number five. He is great, but Ash bhai was also my first captain in the IPL, Punjab. Sorry, Ash bhai, I'll personally message you," he added.

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Arshdeep's all-format India playing XI

Beyond his bowler rankings, Arshdeep also named his all-format India playing XI. His selection included Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir as openers, Rahul Dravid at number three, Virat Kohli at number four, Yuvraj Singh at number five and Rohit Sharma at number six. MS Dhoni was chosen as the wicketkeeper at number seven. The bowling attack in his XI comprised Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Arshdeep Singh himself and Jasprit Bumrah.