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Ravichandran Ashwin credits Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid for India’s aggressive ODI batting revolution, before highlighting questionable selection selections in the present era.
R Ashwin (Picture Credit: PTI)
Ravichandran Ashwin on Monday (December 1) credited former captain and coach duo of Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid for India’s revolution in ODI cricket towards aggressive batting. He said Dravid got here with the philosophy that batting can’t just be about ‘average’ but in addition must be about strike rate, while Rohit led from the front, implementing it every time he went out to open the innings.
This variation was brought on from across the 2022 season, culminating within the 2023 World Cup. Despite it being his biggest tournament, Rohit batted at a strike rate of 125.95, scoring almost 600 runs in 11 innings. He was well supported by the likes of Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, who used their experience to manage the tempo within the middle-overs. Combined with India’s excellent bowling, it worked beautifully until the ultimate.
“Rohit as a captain has all the time been laying his stamp by showing the team what he wants from it,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel. “The transitional batting that India has undergone in T20 cricket and ODI cricket –the way in which we bat fast — lots of credit for that goes to Rohit and Rahul bhai. They showed the way in which, Rahul bhai said that is how we now have to play and Rohit showed the way in which..paved the way in which and eventually it has modified the way in which how Indian perceived batting. Batting isn’t average, it is solely strike rate in white ball cricket,” he added.
India’s ODI team is now half-struck in a transition. Rohit and Kohli are still around and firing but there are doubts on whether or not they could proceed till the 2027 World Cup, leaving the team in a tough state where they can not use the limited ODI matches to offer exposure to kids either.
‘Something unsuitable in squad selection’: Ashwin
Injuries to recent captain Shubman Gill, Iyer and Hardik Pandya in the continued ODI series against South Africa have given a brand new look to the team. Ruturaj Gaikwad, who’s an opener by trade, batted at number 4 in the primary ODI, with Washington Sundar at five and KL Rahul in a more demanding role at number six.
Ashwin questioned why the team isn’t picking Nitish Kumar Reddy as a like-for-like alternative for Pandya.
“If we are usually not in a position to discover a place for Nitish Kumar Reddy in a team that doesn’t have Hardik Pandya, then there’s something unsuitable within the squad selection, seriously. Why was he picked? Since the indisputable fact that he may give what Hardik may give, and may recover over a time frame. But, if we will’t discover a place for Nitish Kumar Reddy on this particular XI, then the squad selection have to be properly reviewed,” Ashwin said.
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