Team India have called up Ravichandran Ashwin and Washington Sundar for the ODI series against Australia which starts on September 22. The 3-match ODI series will be India’s last bilateral series ahead of the ODI World Cup 2023, set to begin on October 5. And, former India spinner Amit Mishra said that India have called up Ashwin to prepare him as a backup spinner as well.
Notably, Ashwin, who turned 39 a few days ago had been training at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru and was in touch with India captain Rohit Sharma as well.
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“Ashwin is undoubtedly a quality bowler and a wicket-taker, but remember this is not a 20-over game. It is of 50 overs. The only reason he has been picked is because if a spinner gets injured, then the team needs to have a wicket-taking option, which Ashwin brings. Ashwin has got an edge as an off-spin option, as India already has two left-arm spinners and a wrist-spinner in Kuldeep Yadav,” former India spinner Amit Mishra said while talking about the team selection on Jio Cinema.
Meanwhile, the veteran IPL spinner further added that it would be a challenge for Ashwin to field for 50 overs in a game as well. However, Mishra further added that Washington Sundar will have an upper hand over Ashwin because of his age.
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“Indian team will be looking at how Ashwin will be bowling against Australia, and to assess if he still has the wicket-taking abilities in this format. The only reason why he is not in the team is because of his fielding and right-handed batting ability. Jadeja and Axar are both lefties. Washington is a young player and has shown wicket-taking abilities apart from being a batting option. Plus, he provides an advantage with his fielding, something which holds importance in ODIs,” he concluded.
