Rajasthan Royals bowler Ravichandran Ashwin.
| Photo Credit: AP
R. Ashwin couldn’t have asked for a better build-up to this year’s IPL. Before the T20 extravaganza, the off-spinner had a tremendous Test series against England at home, where he crossed some significant milestones. He became the second Indian bowler to cross 500 Test wickets and played his 100th Test.
However, as he swapped the red cherry for the white kookaburra ball, the wily spinner had a tough start to the tournament. He went wicketless for six consecutive games and had only two after nine outings.
But in the last four matches, the 37-year-old has managed to turn things around, scalping seven wickets while being miserly (ER: 6.81). And Ashwin saved his best for the big occasion on Wednesday in the Eliminator clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru with a match-winning performance.
His spell (4-0-19-2) during the middle phase of the game proved decisive, helping Rajasthan Royals restrict RCB to a below-par score.
But more than the numbers, it was a masterclass in defensive bowling, where he did not concede a boundary. Ashwin also dispelled the myths about match-ups, which state that an off-spinner to a right-hander is not the most effective choice for a skipper.
Against RCB’s right-handed heavy batting lineup, Ashwin stuck to a predominantly over-the-wicket line to tie down Rajat Patidar – one of the best players of spin – and Cameron Green by bowling into their pads and cramping the batters for width.
After collecting his Player of the Match award on Wednesday, Ashwin opened up about his difficult start to the season. “Truth be told, my body wasn’t moving at all in the first half of the season. I felt like I wasn’t able to complete my action many times. I had a little bit of an abdomen injury as well. So I couldn’t get through it a lot,” said Ashwin.
“For me, it was more about the rhythm and hitting the right lengths. You come from Test-match mode, and your body needs to get into it. I am ageing, so it’s not that easy anymore.”
“The amount of repetitions I need for the T20 game is a lot. I actually bowl a lot off the game time as well. I needed that amount of bowling time to get into the rhythm,” he added.
At a time when off-spinners are hard to come by in the competition, Ashwin is pretty much the last man standing, flying the flag for his craft. Having rediscovered his mojo, Royals will hope the Tamil Nadu off-spinner can continue this form in the home stretch of the competition that will be played in his backyard over the next three days, starting with Friday’s Qualifier-2 clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad.