"Still finding a way to deal with Ravichandran Ashwin" - Dinesh Karthik on David Warner's struggles against Indian spinner
Dinesh Karthik believes that Australian opener David Warner still hasn't found a way to tackle India's veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin despite having a wonderful Test career.
The senior wicketkeeper-batter pointed out that Warner tried his best to ensure that he didn't commit any errors against Ashwin during Australia's second innings of the Test series opener in Nagpur.
Karthik suggested that it is very challenging for a left-handed batter on Indian pitches, where the odd deliveries don't spin and go with the arm instead.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, Karthik explained:
"It is phenomenal watching him [Ravichandran Ashwin] bowl and just the kind of trajectories that he is able to bowl and the kind of deliveries he is able to bowl. You could see David Warner, with the grand career that he has had so far, still finding a way to deal with Ashwin.
"In India, especially on pitches like these which offer spin and the odd one keeps straight, it's always a challenge for the batter. He [Warner] tried his best, making sure that there was no room for error."
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Notably, Warner has struggled against Ashwin in red-ball cricket. The southpaw has been dismissed by the seasoned spinner 11 times in Test matches. The swashbuckling opener failed to make a significant impact in the first Test, finishing with scores of 1 and 10.
"Should have swept" - Dinesh Karthik on David Warner's defensive approach against Ravichandran Ashwin
Dinesh Karthik further suggested that David Warner relied too much on his defense against Ravichandran Ashwin on Day 3 of the first Test.
He opined that the left-handed batter should have used the sweep shot against Ashwin to create some doubts in the mind of the bowler. The 37-year-old highlighted that the batter just kept on defending, even when the ball was pitched on the leg stump.
"David Warner defended really well until the time he lasted," Karthik added. "But when the ball was on the leg stump, he should have swept it at times so that he puts that doubt in Ashwin's mind. However, he kept on defending it."
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While Warner was dismissed for just one run in the first innings, he did show some resistance during his team's second essay. However, his knock came to an end after he was trapped LBW by Ashwin, who completed a stunning five-wicket haul.
Australia were bundled out for just 91 runs, losing the opening encounter to India by an innings and 132 runs.