India player Dinesh Karthik has said that India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin doesn’t want to be ‘pigeonholed’ as just a run-of-the-mill off-spinner. He also said that Ashwin’s skills and versatility are somewhere between a finger spinner and a mystery spinner as well.
The wicketkeeper-batter told Cricbuzz: “I completely get what he’s saying. He doesn’t want to be pigeonholed along with the rest of the finger-spinning world. He says that because he has the carrom ball, he thinks like a leg-spinner so bowls more outgoing delivered a right-hander and for a left-hander, he’s bowling a lot more of his stock-ball which is off-spin. He wants the world to perceive him as a very versatile bowler and not a finger spinner. I think he’s somewhere between a finger spinner and a mystery spinner. We haven’t got a word for it but he’s somewhere there in the between.”
READ HERE: Shaun Tait explains why speedsters struggle to bowl 150+kmph
However, Ravichandran Ashwin has recently returned to the shortest format after more than four years. Moreover, he picked up two wickets for just 14 runs from his four overs as well. On the other hand, Dinesh Karthik has shared how different he is from others.
He said: “I know for a fact that he feels that when he wasn’t picked for the Indian team it was because people were feeling he’s a finger spinner. He wants people to know that, ‘I can bowl the leg-spin, I use my seam position, I use the other variations I have’. What’s the wrist-spinner do? Why is it difficult to hit him compared to the finger spinner? For a finger spinner, you know the bowl is turning one way and you can lineup beforehand. What does Ashwin do? Yes he bowls off-spin but he has the ball that goes away which is the carrom ball or a knuckleball, however, you want to call it. ”
READ HERE: Aakash Chopra opens up on New Zealand’s T20 World Cup squad
“So he’s saying ‘I can do that consistently ball after ball’ and under lights obviously some batters find it hard to pick him. And hence, ‘Don’t pigeonhole me into the off-spinner/finger-spinner bracket, I am slightly different to the others’, is what he’s trying to say,” Dinesh Karthik concluded.
Although they won against Scotland, their chances of qualifying for the semi-final is still tough. They have still one game left.
