England vs India 2014: Saqlain Mushtaq puzzled by non-inclusion of R Ashwin

R Ashwin (L) with MS Dhoni

Former Pakistan spinner Saqlain Mushtaq has questioned India’s selection policy, asking why R Ashwin has not been given a chance so far in England. In the first two Tests of the ongoing series against England, Ravindra Jadeja has been picked as the lead spinner.

Jadeja has done well with the bat, but his bowling has not been up to the mark. He has rarely troubled the batsmen and could not take even one wicket on the fifth day of the Lord’s Test. That too on a pitch which was helping the spinners a great deal.

Saqlain believes that Ashwin can do a good job in the English conditions and can be played alongside Jadeja.

The man who reinvented the doosra in international cricket, said: “England had six left-handed batsmen in their eleven. Why aren't they playing R Ashwin? Isn't it an obvious choice if they really want to play five bowlers? It is understandable that they didn't want to play him at Lord's. It was such a green-top wicket that you couldn't differentiate between the pitch and the outfield on day one. The pitch eventually took some turn on days four and five. But nobody will play two spinners on such a track thinking that it will turn later. But why didn't they play two spinners in the first Test at Nottingham on that flat track?”

He also said that Ashwin has two Test hundreds and his batting cannot be underestimated. The Tamil Nadu cricketer has played a couple of decent innings for India in the past, most notably against the West Indies in 2013.

“At Lord's they could have obviously played only one spinner, and Ravindra Jadeja was Dhoni's choice, no doubt. It seems, he prefers Jadeja in the longer format, while Ashwin is the preferred spinner in one-day cricket. Amit Mishra is his preferred option in T20 cricket if you see recent results. Different formats have different bowlers, but then you have to consider that India want to play five bowlers. Jadeja is an okay batsman. But Ashwin has two Test hundreds to his name. So you can play two spinners as it will be a better all-round bowling attack. I think it is an obvious call for Dhoni,” the former Pakistan cricketer concluded.