Australia vs India: Russell Arnold praises Ashwin for his effective bowling in the first Test

The spinners from both the teams played an important role at the Adelaide Oval. Both Australia and India went ahead with a lone spinner in their playing XI. Nathan Lyon is already being regarded as one of the greatest off-spinners to play for Australia. On the other hand, Ravichandran Ashwin‘s records speak for himself.

Both managed to create an impact on a pitch that assisted spin. Nathan Lyon ended the test match with 8 wickets in the game. On the other hand, Ashwin had overall match figures of 6/149. However, there was a certain amount of criticism warranted out on Ashwin with regards to his bowling on Day 5.

Ashwin on par with Lyon at Adelaide Oval

In the final day when the Aussie tailenders got to task and frustrated the Indian bowlers, Ashwin failed to make much of an impact. While he bowled well, he had to wait for a wicket until the final ball of the day where he accounted for Josh Hazlewood and finished things off. However, journalist Freddie Wilde pointed out that Ashwin was totally on par with Lyon.

“Criticism of Ashwin’s performance is harsh. He maintained the same average as Lyon & was a more effective holding bowler. Five of his six wickets were top four batsmen. After his previous struggles in Australia, this match represented significant progress. #AUSvIND”

Criticism of Ashwin's performance is harsh. He maintained the same average as Lyon & was a more effective holding bowler. Five of his six wickets were top four batsmen. After his previous struggles in Australia this match represented significant progress. #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/Rf69YkbCAe

— Freddie Wilde (@fwildecricket) December 10, 2018

Russell Arnold joins the chorus and lauds Ashwin

Former Sri Lankan cricketer Russell Arnold has often engaged in verbal banter against Indian fans on Twitter. However, this time around, he praised Ashwin for his splendor effort with the ball at the Adelaide Oval. He asserted how Ashwin bowled for a long duration in order to give the pacers ample rest. “Totally Agree. He closed up one end so the quicks could keep going for longer from the other too. Very effective”

Totally Agree… he closed up one end so the quicks could keep going for longer from the other too. Very effective https://t.co/YB7Q9WKPdS

— Russel Arnold (@RusselArnold69) December 11, 2018

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