"He's taught me a lot" - Nathan Lyon praises Ravichandran Ashwin ahead of 2024/25 BGT
Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon praised his Indian counterpart Ravichandran Ashwin and said he had learned a lot from Ashwin over the years ahead of the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Lyon and Ashwin will likely reignite their friendly rivalry when India and Australia battle over five Tests down under from November 22.
Ashwin is seventh all-time in Test wickets with 536 scalps, while Lyon is breathing down his neck one spot behind with 530 wickets. Both off-spinners made their Test debut in 2011 and have since gone on to become all-time greats.
Speaking to Fox Cricket, Lyon was highly appreciative of Ashwin and his ability to quickly adapt to any and every condition.
"Ash is an incredible bowler. I've gone head-to-head with him for basically my whole career, so I've learned a lot from Ash. He's an incredibly smart bowler, and he's able to learn and adapt very quickly, and I think the best bowlers in the world are able to do that. He's taught me a lot," said Lyon.
He added:
"I'm a big believer that the players you compete against are your best coaches. I've watched a lot of his footage heading over to India, the way he goes about it here in Australia, and see if I can pick up anything."
The duo have also enjoyed incredible success in India-Australia Tests over their respective careers.
Lyon is the all-time leading wicket-taker in India-Australia Tests with 121 scalps in 27 outings, while Ashwin is second with 114 wickets in 22 matches.
"I feel like we're on the journey to becoming a great team" - Nathan Lyon
Nathan Lyon felt the current Australian side is on their way to becoming a great team despite India getting the better of them over the past few match-ups.
The Asian side has won their previous four bilateral series against Australia, including two down under. However, the Aussies won the most recent meeting between the teams in the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC) final in England.
"India's got the wood over us in the past few series, but if you're looking at the World Test Championship (final) in England, we were able to beat them there, and I know that should give us a bit of confidence heading into this summer. I feel like we're on the journey to becoming a great team. We're not there yet, there's a bit of work to do, but we have the opportunity to do something pretty special this summer," said Lyon.
While Australia won their most recent Test series in New Zealand earlier this year, India are coming off a shocking 0-3 defeat to the Black Caps at home.