Ravichandran Ashwin took 6 for 27 as Surrey bowled Somerset out for 69 in the second innings of a Group 2 match in the County Championship 2021.
Ashwin had taken a decision to play in a County Championship match while the Indian team was on a break ahead of the five-match Test series against England. Ashwin, who opened the bowling in both the innings for Surrey, received some criticism for his underwhelming performance in the first innings. He had taken 1 wicket for 99 in 43 overs.
In the second innings, however, Ashwin made great use of extra bounce and drifted to run through Somerset’s batting line-up. Ashwin ran circles around their batting unit, bowling beautifully with his clever variations.
It started with left-handed batter Steven Davies driving one, only to edge it to the keeper Jamie Smith. Tom Lammonby tried to break the shackles with a reverse sweep but ended up giving a simple catch to Jordan Clarke at slip.
The Somerset skipper James Hildreth, who scored a century in the first innings, missed a straighter one and was adjudged LBW. Ashwin’s next victim was George Bartlett, who saw his stumps rattled trying to leave a flighted delivery. In the next over, he dismissed Roelof van der Merwe to complete his seventh five-wicket haul in the County Championship. Leading by 189 runs in the first innings, Somerset were bundled out for 69. The match ended in a draw as Surrey negotiated 41 overs without much hassle.
Currently the best spinner in the world, Ashwin previously had two six-wicket hauls to his name in the County Championship, both of which came against his current team Surrey in 2019. This 6-fer against Somerset is the cheapest of the three. The Indian team management would be delighted to see Ashwin in such a great rhythm heading into the Test series in England.
The Indian team will rejoin the bubble in Durham, where they will play a three-day match against Select County XI from July 20. The Test series is scheduled to kickstart from August 4 with the series opener at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.
