On Thursday, homegrown star Ravichandran Ashwin stated that he deliberately tried to bat aggressively on the red dirt surface used for the first Test match against Bangladesh.
Ashwin’s smart strategy succeeded in lifting India out of a precarious situation with a magnificent century in front of his home crowd.
“It’s an aged Chennai surface that has some give and bounce. After the first day’s play, Ashwin told the host broadcasters, “The red soil pitch allows you to play a few shots if you are willing to just get in line and give it a bit of a tonk when there’s width.”
Naturally, I’ve always been drifting around outside off-stump with my bat. worked on a few things and decided to go for the ball like Rishabh does if I was going to go for it on this surface with a little zing.”
Prior to making a careless shot, Rishabh Pant too batted admirably, scoring 39 off of 52 balls.
Ashwin put up a valiant rearguard effort on a day when India lost their top four at 96 runs, dominating the Bangladesh bowling attack with a stunning 102 not out off 112 balls. He also forged an unbroken partnership with Ravindra Jadeja (86*).
Ashwin credited his recent spell in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, where he improved his batting, for his outstanding performance. The fact that I returned from a T20 event (TNPL) helps. I put in a lot of work into my batting,” he remarked.
“Performing for your hometown audience is always an unforgettable experience. I absolutely love playing cricket on this field. I have a lot of amazing memories from it,” Ashwin, who crushed his second hundred at this location, remarked.
Ashwin also expressed gratitude to teammate Jadeja for helping him through a difficult stretch of the innings.
“Jadeja was a true assistance. I was perspiring and feeling a little sleepy at one point. Jaddu saw it right away and helped me get through that stage,” Ashwin remarked, complimenting Jadeja on her ability to provide timely guidance.
“Over the past few years, Jaddu has emerged as one of the team’s best batters. He was a reliable presence, and I found his suggestion that we didn’t need to turn twos into threes to be really beneficial.”
With the help of their 195-run partnership for the seventh wicket, India improved from a precarious 144/6 at stumps on the first day to a dominant 339/6.
“It’s a typical, old-fashioned Chennai pitch where overspin will fetch a bit of bounce,” Ashwin observed, looking ahead to the following day.
The trickery of the wicket will become apparent much later in the game. Enough is there for the quicks; if we present the seam nice and hard, it will bounce and carry well.
“The new ball will perform somewhat, and tomorrow we will need to begin again. It should quicken as it dries out because it’s still damp below,” he continued.
