Former India spinner reckons Ashwin will get past many more records
Debasis Sen, Hyderabad: He was popularly called muscles by former South African all-rounder Brian McMillan. Venkatpathy Raju, has indeed gained some muscles since retiring from the game. But his love for cricket still exists as he is now playing the role of development officer in Asian Cricket Council.
The former India spinner heaped huge praises on Ravichandran Ashwin, who on Sunday reached the milestone of picking 250 wickets in just 45 test matches. The off spinner became the fastest to achieve the feat surpassing the great Dennis Lillee who took 48 matches to do so.
“To get 250 wickets in just 45 test matches speaks volumes of his consistency. It is an incredible achievement for any bowler. He will break many more records in coming days,” said Raju to xtratime.in
The Hyderabadi has played a fair part in the development of Bangladesh’s new spin sensation few years back. It was during his visit to Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) High Performance Centre) last year, during which he spent time with upcoming spinners of Bangladesh. The weeklong camp was attended by talented spinners like Shohag Gazi, Saqlain Sajib and the young Mehedi Hasan Miraz.
“He (Mehedi Hasan Miraz) has come a long way. I remember the first time I saw him was at the BCB High Performance Centre at the Sher e Bangla stadium. The biggest positive for him is his willingness to learn and has got tremendous temperament which is required for a spinner to do well under any conditions.”
Raju along with the present India coach Anil Kumble struck a deadly pair on the field during their playing days. He presently finds a lot of resemblance with Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. According to Raju, “Ashwin has a come a long way to become the World No. 1 bowler. The confidence he has over the ball is amazing. His biggest strength is to take wickets. His ability to bowl during the power play is something a young aspiring spinner needs to follow. The pair has been a treat to watch in recent times.”
He further added, “He (Ashwin) is someone who a captain can rely upon during crisis- both with his bat and ball. His biggest plus is to get the backing of his captain. He also has the reputation of bowling on different wickets.”
The former India spinner reckons both Ashwin and Jadeja will play a key role for India in the forthcoming test series against Australia. According to Raju, “They (Ashwin and Jadeja) will play a huge role for India in the series against Australia. Given the form they are in, they will come handy in conditions that will favour the spinners.”
On being asked about the situation India finds them in this test match, Raju said, “India should win the test match from here. But the fact is Bangladesh have given a good account of themselves, specially their captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who scored his first hundred here.”
He feels the forthcoming series between India and Australia will be an interesting battle between Indian spinners and Australian batsman.
“It will be a hard fought series between two of the best sides in the world. India will not find it easy against the Aussies as they have some quality batsman in David Warner and Steve Smith. Getting rid of both these batsman early will be the key for India to do well in the series,” said Raju.
He further added, “The hosts will have an advantage since they are playing continuously from the South Africa series.”