Ashwin goes level with iconic spinner Muttiah Muralitharan for remarkable Test feat

Ravichandran Ashwin celebrates after taking a wicket during the second Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur.
| Photo Credit: Sandeep Saxena

Ravichandran Ashwin tied Sri Lanka’s icon Muttiah Muralitharan’s record for most Player of the Series awards in Test cricket following his splendid display in the two-match series against Bangladesh.

The 38-year-old has been ageing like a fine wine, making the opposition batters dance to his tunes by making the ball obey his command. Ashwin’s efforts were recognised after he made the visitors toil hard whenever they stepped up on the crease. He was adjudged the Player of the Series, which was his 11th title overall. He is now tied with Muralitharan, who also bagged 11 POTS awards during his illustrious career.

Ashwin will be eager to go past the legendary spinner when he steps out to face New Zealand, who recently endured a 2-0 whitewash against Sri Lanka. But before India takes up their new assignment, Ashwin will continue to be the talk of the town for the eye-catching set of performances he produced across both Tests. In the Chennai Test, he sent out a strong statement with a hard-fought century in the first inning. But his job didn’t finish at that. He returned to dampen Bangladesh’s hopes of orchestrating a 515-run chase by scything a six-wicket haul to help India seal a 280-run victory.

In the second Test, he was a constant threat to Bangladesh batters with his bewitching spells and spin craft. He stung Bangladesh in crucial junctures, limited their range of strokes, and helped India win against the weather in a rain-curtailed Test in Kanpur. He finished the series as the joint-leading wicket-taker with a whopping tally of 11 scalps alongside his compatriot Jasprit Bumrah.

Overall, Ashwin finished the two-match series with 11 wickets and 114 runs to his name. After India extended its consecutive victories at home in Test cricket to 18, the Rohit Sharma-led side will be keen to ride high on the momentum in the three Tests against the Kiwis followed by the highly-anticipated Border Gavaskar Trophy in Australia later this year.