India may rue decision to leave out most successful bowler in current WTC cycle
"We have got four seamers and one spinner and that is Ravindra Jadeja," India skipper Rohit Sharma told former England skipper Nasser Hussain after winning the toss and opting to field at the Oval on Wednesday. He was then asked by Hussain to justify the call and was asked how tough it was to leave a bowler of R Ashwin's quality out. The off-spinner, incidentally, missed his sixth Test in England in a row.
1/10:WTC Final: The curious case of Ashwin's omission
IANS
2/10:Ravichandran Ashwin
<p>There was no place for off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in India's seam-heavy attack in the World Test Championship final against Australia at The Oval. </p>PTI
3/10:No. 1-ranked Test bowler
<p>But as Travis Head and Steve Smith put Australia on top on Day 1, India may rue the decision to leave out the No. 1-ranked Test bowler. </p>Reuters
4/10:Rohit Sharma
<p>India skipper Rohit Sharma tried to justify the call with well-grassed pitch which was a bit dry underneath and some grey skies at least to start with. </p>ANI
5/10:India's best bowler in WTC cycle
<p>Ashwin, India's most successful bowler in the 2021-23 WTC cycle, with 61 scalps from 13 Tests, missed his sixth Test in England in a row. </p>Getty Images
6/10:Team combination
<p>India's team combination had become as big a talking point as the pitch for the contest much before the game. </p>Getty Images
7/10:2 finals, 2 mistakes
<p>India had erred in the last WTC final in Southampton vs New Zealand in 2021 by picking two spinners in damp conditions. </p>AP
8/10:Ravindra Jadeja
<p>A 4-1 combination outside the subcontinent, with Ravindra Jadeja being preferred as the sole spinner because of his improved batting, has worked for India. </p>PTI
9/10:The wisdom
<p>But as Smith and Head repelled India, Rohit might have wondered about the wisdom of leaving out Ashwin, who could have been a threat against an Australia top five featuring three left-handers. </p>Getty Images
10/10:Australia's nemesis
<p>Ashwin may have made peace with the fact that potentially his last chance for another duel with an adversary that has defined his career is gone. </p>Getty Images"It's always tough. He has been a match-winner for us, over the course of many years. So, leaving him out was tough. But you got to do the things that are needed for the team. So eventually we came up with that decision," Rohit said. He also tried to justify the call by talking about the conditions - read a well-grassed pitch which was a bit dry underneath, as observed by the commentators, and some grey skies at least to start with.
Ashwin's name was soon trending on social media, with comments of former players and his records to prove whether the call was right or wrong. Former Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting was vehement about the fact that India had erred by dropping the No. 1-ranked Test bowler and their most successful bowler in the 2021-23 WTC cycle, with 61 scalps from 13 Tests.
As the sun came out and batting became easier, Ponting's words resonated louder. "India have made a mistake of picking a bowling attack just for the first innings of the game. Australia have many left-handers. Ashwin will trouble the left-handers more than Jadeja. I saw the grass on the pitch. Yes, there was grass, but the deeper I looked, it seemed dry to me," he said during his commentary stint.
India's team combination had become as big a talking point as the pitch for the contest much before the game. The errors they made in the last WTC final in Southampton vs New Zealand in 2021 by picking two spinners in damp conditions were highlighted ad nauseum. However, a 4-1 combination outside the subcontinent, with Jadeja being preferred as the sole spinner because of his improved batting, has worked for India.
1/10:WTC Final: Head, Smith put Australia on top against India on Day 1
AP
2/10:Travis Head
<p>Travis Head's dashing century was the centrepiece of an Australia fightback against India on the opening day of the World Test Championship final at The Oval on Wednesday. </p>Getty Images
3/10:Steve Smith
<p>Australia were in a commanding position on 327/3 at stumps after losing the toss, with Head 146 not out and Steve Smith 95 not out. </p>Getty Images
4/10:Mohammed Siraj
<p>India started strongly when Mohammed Siraj removed Usman Khawaja for a duck with an excellent wobble-seam delivery and Australia were 2/1. </p>Getty Images
5/10:David Warner
<p>David Warner's promising innings ended on 43 when a gloved pull off Shardul Thakur was well caught down the legside by diving wicketkeeper Srikar Bharat.</p>Getty Images
6/10:Marnus Labuschagne
<p>Marnus Labuschagne fell early in the second session for his lunch score of 26 when he was bowled between bat and pad by a Mohammed Shami inswinger.</p>Getty Images
7/10:The rescue act
<p>Head and Smith then came together with Australia in trouble at 76/3 in bowler-friendly conditions, but as the sun burst through the clouds, the runs started to flow.</p>Getty Images
8/10:The counter-attack
<p>Head was troubled by Ravindra Jadeja but by counter-attacking from the start of his innings -- 24 of his first 27 runs came in boundaries -- he put the pressure back on the bowlers.</p>Getty Images
9/10:Smith at The Oval
<p>With Smith, who before this match averaged nearly 98 in Tests at The Oval, batting in more conventional fashion it gave Head freedom to keep playing his shots. </p>Getty Images
10/10:The short ball
<p>By the time India tested Head with the short ball, he was well set and a pulled single off Mohammed Shami took him to a sixth Test hundred in just 106 balls, including 14 fours and a six. </p>Getty ImagesThe team management, who rely a lot on data, would have also looked at the fact that Oval had not hosted a Test in June. Hosts Surrey, who have played three county games this season at the venue, not picking a spinner in any of those games, would have also been noticed.
Ashwin was spotted sitting outside the change room with the support staff, sporting sunglasses that probably hid a tear or two. The 36-year-old carrying drinks and passing on advice to the bowlers during the break, though, gave the impression that he may have made peace with the fact that potentially his last chance for another duel with an adversary that has defined his career is gone.
India's next Test engagement vs Australia won't happen till December 2024, and one wonders whether Ashwin will be around by then.
