Ravichandran Ashwin being sewed-up for the ultimate showdown

The exclusion of ace spinner Ravichandran Ashwin from the Indian squad that will take on the mighty Aussies in the first 3 ODIs has given birth to a lot of questions. While the fans continue to figure out whether it was an axe or a rest, Cheif selector MSK Prasad made it clear that Ashwin is being prepared for team India’s battles outside the borders of the country.

The story:

Ravichandran Ashwin is currently playing county for Worcestershire in England and the selectors have decided to fetch him some more time to hone his skills and experience under overseas conditions. Prasad believes that the valuable time offered to him will shape the master of the carrom ball into a lethal weapon for the Indians when the team flies to England for a 5-match Test series next summer.

“It is a blessing in disguise because we will have a fully fledged tour of five Tests in England next year,” said selection committee chairman MSK Prasad. “It is always good to play and get that first-hand feel of the conditions. From a selection point of view, he has been rested first and then he has been given consent by the BCCI to go and play county cricket,” MSK Prasad had said while revealing the squad for the Sri Lanka series.

While Ravichandran Ashwin has been an asset for the team in home conditions his performance outside the country has faced a lot of criticism. Ashwin had previously stated that it has been a ‘childhood’ dream for him to play county cricket and it is a golden opportunity for the Chennai bowler to make his dream count. Ashwin’s consistency in the limited over formats have also been subjected to harsh assessments in the recent past. However, it will be exciting to see how the bowler shuts down his party poopers in the near future.