Former England captain Nasser Hussain praised veteran India player Ravichandran Ashwin for his match-winning performance against England in the fourth Test. Ashwin took his 35th 5-wicket haul during the third innings of the Test held at the JSCA Stadium in Ranchi. His efforts were then complimented by the Indian batsmen who ensured the hosts got over the victory line and tripled their series lead.
The fourth Test was England’s last chance to turn around the five-match series and they even started with a clear intention to dominate. Ben Stokes’ team was on top for the first 2 mornings before Dhruv Jurel sparked India’s comeback in the late hours of Day 2 and early hours of Day 3. His 90-run knock required support from the front line. bowling and that was when Ravichandran Ashwin rose to the task.
Nasser Hussain says Ashwin was destined for success in fourth Test
While writing for his column in the Daily Mail, Nasser Hussain responded to doubters who claimed that Ashwin had kept quiet in this Test series. Hussain called Ashwin “a great cricketer” who cannot be dismissed and claimed that he was the point of difference in the third innings.
“People have been saying that Ashwin has had a quiet series, but this game has been a reminder that you can’t hold back a great cricketer. Root proved it in England’s first innings and Ashwin underlined the point in the second,” Hussain wrote praising Ravichandran Ashwin via the Daily Mail.
Before claiming all five points in the third innings, Ashwin had accounted for 11 wickets from the 3 Tests in Hyderabad, Vizag and Rajkot. The 37-year-old entered the elite club of 500 Test wickets in the 3rd Test at Rajkot, where he took just 2 wickets in the innings.
But in the slow turn at Ranchi, Ravichandran Ashwin came up with a solid game plan. Captain Rohit Sharma handed him the new ball and Ashwin didn’t waste much time in beginning his annihilation of the English batting. He removed Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Joe Root very quickly before Kuldeep Yadav came into action and scalped Zak Crawley, Ben Stokes, Tom Hartley and Ollie Robinson.
Ashwin’s last 2 wickets were from Ben Foakes and James Anderson, while Ravindra Jadeja claimed the only wicket from Jonny Bairstow.
Hussain appreciates Rohit Sharma’s decision to hand Ravichandran Ashwin the new ball.
While watching England’s third innings, Nasser Hussain noticed how Ravichandran Ashwin’s eyes lit up when Rohit Sharma handed him the new ball. Hussain also appreciated Rohit’s tactical thinking in bringing in the player who made an immediate impact.
“You could see the fire in his eyes when Rohit gave him the new ball, he was determined to leave his class in the series. Rohit Sharma got it right when he opened the bowling with Ravichandran Ashwin, after delaying his innings too long in the first innings at Rajkot,” concluded Hussain.