Former Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria thinks India’s Ravichandran Ashwin shouldn’t have been selected for the ongoing T20 World Cup. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaneria also suggested that Ashwin should stick to Test cricket as he did during Virat Kohli’s tenure as the Indian captain.
He pointed out that the off-spinner wasn’t expected to do well in Australian conditions and went on to say that T20 cricket is not for Ashwin.
“Ashwin didn’t deserve to play in this T20 World Cup. He cannot do well in Australian conditions. He should only play Test cricket. Virat Kohli did the right thing when he was the captain, reserving Ashwin only for the longer format. T20 cricket is not his cup of tea,”
said Kaneria.
Ashwin picked six wickets in the group stage, five of which came against Netherlands and Zimbabwe. In India’s only loss in the group stage, Ashwin conceded 43 runs versus South Africa. Ashwin also failed to contain the England opening duo in the semi-final, getting hammered for 27 in two overs.
Kaneria also questioned India’s tactics regarding Rishabh Pant. He believes India should have sent the left-hand batter higher up the order.
“India played Rishabh Pant in this game. But if they brought him in, they should have at least utilised him well. They could have promoted him higher up the order. He should have been sent after KL Rahul’s dismissal. What is he going to do when he gets a chance to bat in the 19th over?”
he added.
Pant was brought into the side, keeping in mind short square boundaries and to tackle the leg-spinner Adil Rashid. But India didn’t send Pant early, allowing Rashid to bowl at right-handers and produce an impactful spell of 1 for 20 in four overs. Pant could only face four deliveries at the back end and had to sacrifice his wicket in the final over for a well-set Hardik Pandya.
