[ad_1]
It’s not hard to see why Anil Kumble and R Ashwin have formed a mutual admiration society. There is a lot in common between the former Indian captain, arguably the greatest match-winner in Indian cricket, and the modern-day giant who joined the illustrious leg-spinner in the 500-wicket club in Tests last month. past. On Thursday in Dharamsala, Ashwin will also join Kumble in the 100-Test club, although this group is not as exclusive as the group of wicket-takers.
Coming from similar family backgrounds, armed with engineering degrees and neither of them starting out as spinners (Kumble aspired to be a fast bowler, Ashwin wanted to be a top-order batsman), the two stand out as shining beacons in the practice of their crafts. . Until Ashwin, Kumble was the second-fastest to 500 Test wickets, only behind the incomparable Muttiah Muralitharan. Just over a week ago in Ranchi, Ashwin went level with Kumble’s tally of most five-wicket hauls in a Test innings (35), with only Murali (an incredible 67 times), Shane Warne (37) and Sir Richard Hadlee (36). ) in front of them.
However, especially in the last half-dozen years, Ashwin has not been India’s first-choice spinner outside the subcontinent, the complete package that left-hander Ravindra Jadeja offers as a more attractive package for successive team managements. It is therefore no surprise to hear Kumble say that he believes the 37-year-old should have played his 100th Test much earlier, nor that he agrees that Ashwin reminds him of himself.
“Many times,” he says. Hindustan Times when you ask him if he sees shadows of himself in the Chennai spinner. “I guess even his career has been similar; he probably started later, I started a little earlier. But otherwise, it pretty much reflects some of the things I went through. In my opinion, he should have played his 100th game a lot.” before. But for some reason, he hasn’t. No one is sure why he isn’t chosen when India travels outside the subcontinent. That’s a bit strange, something that has always perplexed me. It happened to me too, but his is very different. We tend to look at a fourth fast bowler (now) than someone who wins the match, which is really strange. At least in my case, we always played with four bowlers. But when you play with five bowlers, then Not playing your two best spinners is a bit, I don’t know, strange…”
Welcoming Ashwin to the 500-wicket club, the so far only Indian on that elite list adds: “It’s good that someone else has been able to reach that. Ash is still going strong, he obviously has all the ability to surpass (Kumble’s Indian record of 619 Test wickets). His ability to do exceptionally well as a match-winner, the consistency that he has shown all these years, is a great hallmark. It’s not easy to do that. Especially in India, once the bar has been raised, it is not easy to continue performing at that level.”
For almost a year, from mid-2016 to mid-2017, Kumble watched closely as Ashwin went about his business when he was the head coach of the national team. During that period, India played Tests in the Caribbean and at home against New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia, losing only one and winning 12 of 17 games with Ashwin as the leading scorer (99 wickets and 699 runs with two centuries in those). 17 games).
“The consistency he showed was amazing,” says Kumble. “He is very thorough in how he prepares. He deeply understands the players, the conditions and then tries to find a solution to win the battle. “That is something that stood out – that, and his ability to work on a player in those spells. It was very evident where he was looking to prepare the batsmen. You know when he bowls a spell, no matter who the two batsmen are, they are fallible because he is always thinking, plotting and working. “That is something he has done exceptionally well over the years. years and even that year, when I was with the team, he did it. Against those five different teams, you could see him working on how to set up a player, what speeds to throw. and what angles to play from. You want to see that. “You know that when someone does that the results are just around the corner, it’s a formality.”
Kumble marvels at Ashwin’s ability to adapt
Throughout his long career, Kumble continued to expand his repertoire and, after shoulder surgery in 2001 to correct a rotator cuff problem, he developed two googlies, among other variations. Ashwin has not been content to rest on his laurels either. “One thing is that you are never satisfied with what is happening,” Kumble clarifies about the constant evolving process of a cricketer. “You want to improve, you want to get the best out of the hitter. He also looks for opportunities to read other bowlers bowing to batsmen who might have done well against you in the past and understand what lengths and lines they are bowling and how he can incorporate that into his own skills. Constant improvement, trying to evolve, says a lot about a bowler and that is something Ash has done over the years. You can still see him continue to learn, continue to play domestic cricket so you can test all that because that’s where all these things are tested.
“That’s the reason why I used to come back and play the Ranji Trophy or a club match or a national match. One is, of course, that your home team will do well because you have a quality player coming back into the set-up. It’s not like that. Not only does it improve the team’s performance, but also individually, everyone improves their game because you have an international player among them, but it also gives you the opportunity to try new things as a bowler, as a player, and that’s something you’ve seen Ash. He appears in the TNPL, he appears in Tamil Nadu, he appears and plays club cricket. That’s what you want to see. It’s not just about going to that team and showing solidarity, but also learning about your own bowling game.”, about evolving. That just goes to show that if you’re passionate about your skill and what you do, you try to maximize that until you can actually do it because you have to stop at some point, right…? But until then, as long as you can go there and do it, why not? The more you do it, the better you will be. That’s something he does.”
Kumble cracks a cryptic laugh when asked if Ashwin hasn’t gotten his due as champion, not unlike Kumble himself in his prime. “With some players, people miss what they brought to the table after they retired, right?” he says matter-of-factly. “Some players are like that. Maybe people realize Ash’s quality… I know people are talking about him and what he has already achieved, but especially in a country like India, bowlers don’t they get the same kind of adulation as the batsmen. “That’s the nature of how we view cricket in our country. We’ll probably realize his quality when he retires and moves on. But in my opinion, Ash is in the top tier of players who have played for the country.
“I love his passion and hunger for the game. Apart from his bowling, he adds a lot more value both with his batting and his contributions on the field. Although he has never been officially given the captaincy position, he has always done so.” “He has been a leader within the group and that is something he can be proud of.”