If Ashwin has a good IPL, he should be considered for T20 World Cup: Laxman Sivaramakrishnan

Former Indian spinner Laxman Sivaramakrishnan has opined that Ravichandran Ashwin should be given a chance in the T20 World Cup if he does well in the IPL 2021. The second leg of IPL 2021 will be played in the United Arab Emirates right before the T20 World Cup 2021. Ashwin last played for India in a white-ball match in 2017. 

The experienced spinner expressed that Ashwin can be handy against left-handers and his experience can be valuable for the Indian team. The off-spinner has a good record playing for India in T20Is. He has so far picked up 52 wickets from 46 matches at an economy just under 7. Sivaramakrishnan also pointed out that Ashwin has worked on fitness and also can be athletic in the field. 

Sivaramakrishnan’s comments suggest that having Ashwin in the squad will allow the Indian team to have a really good off-spinner if the team comes against a side with several left-handers. He further said if Ashwin can put up good performances for his IPL team, Delhi Capitals, he should be considered. Unfortunately, in the first leg of IPL 2021, Ashwin played five matches for Delhi. Though his economy was 7.7, he managed to take only one scalp. 

He has worked hard on his fielding and fitness: Sivaramakrishnan on Ashwin

“Yes, he (Ravichandran Ashwin) is one of the outstanding bowlers we’ve had in the last few years. His experience will definitely help. He bowls very well to left-handers. He’s not a slouch on the field, he can field reasonably well and is a safe catcher. He has worked hard on his fielding and fitness. He should be considered in my opinion. If there are a lot of left-handers in the opposition, you want your best off-spinner to be bowling to them. If Ashwin has a good IPL in the UAE, he should be considered,” Laxman Sivaramakrishnan said at a press conference arranged by Sony. 

The former spinner also spoke about Kuldeep Yadav. He pointed out that he is a special talent and can be handy for India when he performs well. He expressed that Kuldeep has to get his confidence back and noted that his IPL team, Kolkata Knight Riders, dropping him from their first choice XI has also not helped his confidence. “If he works hard and has a good IPL, he can have a good chance of a comeback,” Sivaramakrishnan said. 

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