R Ashwin: An engineer turning into an all-rounder

R Ashwin: A great all-rounder in the making

Normally, on any given day during a test match, one or two players outperform and grab the attention. But the outstanding performance demonstrated by R Ashwin – making 124 runs and also taking 3 wickets for just 46 runs – has partly gone under the shadow of the glamorous farewell of legend Sachin Tendulkar.

An outshining performance by Mohammed Shami (5 for 47) and the brilliant knock of 177 runs by Rohit Sharma also shared the space in terms of coverage. The focus was also more on Rohit Sharma and Mohamed Shami, as it was their debut in test matches.

Nevertheless, this does not hamper the appreciation which Ashwin received from millions of fans. This 27-year-old star is really very humble, sincere and hardworking. His humbleness showed when Ashwin politely turned down the label of an all-rounder.

This young man is playing for Tamil Nadu, India and also for the Chennai Super Kings in IPL. He relies on his powerful off spin and arm ball which he utilizes in an effective manner. As a bowler, he has contributed tremendously in this match by taking 5 wickets and just giving away 98 runs.

His specialty in bowling ranges from the ever impressive off break, arm ball and carom ball. His performance in this test with the bat, the ball, as well as on the field unilaterally qualifies him as an amazing all rounder.

Even before the beginning of the Champions Trophy, R Ashwin had become the most preferred spin bowler for India. He was able to fulfill the expectations up to a satisfactory level in this tournament.

His journey has been fairly good. He made his debut in limited overs cricket in June 2012. After the decline of Harbhajan Singh, Ashwin was the obvious choice.

A very interesting notion which is commonly circulating is that he performs well when the situation is tense and a certain pressure is there. He believes that constant improvisation will strengthen his skills. So he is trying hard to find variations in his bowling, such as bowling after a brief pause as well as the carom ball.This depicts his belief in adopting suitable technique as per the need.

However, he should not forget the fact that off spin is the key word for him and it is always better to keep the things straight and simple. Yesterday, based on his power of off spin, he was able to take two important wickets against the West Indies.

It has been observed that whenever people start thinking that he is not performing up to the mark, he strikes well – this is because his determination reaches at a new level. Perhaps his self belief is the reason that yesterday he has made 124 valuable runs and taken 2 wickets as well. This depicts his strong will power to contribute. Ashwin is already 27 and this appears to be high time for him to make a mark by consistently performing well.

With sound support from Bhuvneshwar Kumar and the newly cropped up Shami Ahmed, hopefully Ashwin will be spreading his magic regularly. His average speaks volumes about his talent. Did you know that his Test batting average is 41.11? Also, his bowling average is 28.07. This makes him one of the top all-rounders in the world, at least in terms of numbers.

It is wonderful to have shining players like R Ashwin, but the only suggestion many of his fans would like to offer is that he should stick to basic off spin and not deviate by experimenting too much.

For most of the opponents, his off break and occasional carom balls have a killing effect. Love to see him striking every time. Waiting to see another mind boggling performance soon! He has smoothly transitioned from an engineer to a star all-rounder!