NEW DELHI:
Virender Sehwag
is known for not mincing his words as the former India opener launched a scathing attack on
Ravichandran Ashwin
for his recent statement.
Sehwag pointed out Ashwin's struggle to take wickets in the
IPL 2024
and suggested that the off-spinner might not secure a spot in the playing XI of a team coached by him.
"This is the same as when
KL Rahul
had said that the strike rate doesn't matter.
Same thing. He said it for batting, Ashwin has said it for bowling that it doesn't matter if you get the wickets. If his stats aren't good, then he may not even get picked in the auction next year. When you pick a bowler, do you expect him to give away 25-30 runs or do you expect him to give you wickets and become man of the match twice or thrice?" Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
"All his competitors - Chahal,
Kuldeep Yadav
or anyone else - are getting the wickets. He thinks if he bowls off spin then anyone will hit him. Which is why he bowls his carrom bowl, which is why he is not getting any wickets. Maybe if he believes in his off spin or doosra, he can bag more wickets. But that's his mindset. But if I were a mentor or a coach of a franchise, I wouldn't think like that. If my bowler is thinking about saving runs and not taking wickets, he won't find a place in the team."
Despite only taking two wickets in 8 matches, Royals have continued to support Ashwin by featuring him regularly in their playing XI. Meanwhile, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ashwin's spin-bowling teammate at RR, has been more prolific with 13 wickets in 9 matches and has maintained an economy rate of 9.
Earlier, Ashwin made an appeal after bowlers getting hammered in the current IPL season saying "Save the bowlers someone plsss SOS SOS SOS".
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