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Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is furious with the team management's decision to bench Arshdeep Singh. Ashwin said that the bowling community should be angry as Arshdeep has lost his place to Shivam Dube because he can't bat. He feels that the left-arm pacer’s confidence will be dented as he is missing out despite being in good form.
“Arshdeep has to come into the playing XI. In my view, if you can lock Shubman Gill as opener, Suryakumar Yadav at No. 4 and Jasprit Bumrah at No. 11, then why can't someone who has been your best T20 bowler be locked? These rules for batters and bowlers have always been an issue in my head,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“These decisions pertaining to bowlers are sometimes taken by batters. These batters have never bowled a ball in their entire life. Bowlers are doing that forever. It is hard for the batters to understand the mindset of the bowlers. Think about the confidence in the bowlers. If you are consistently parking him out of the side because you want a No. 8, then think what he would go through. He is in a purple patch and bowling well. He is not going to get these wonderful years back,” he added.
On the eve of the clash against Pakistan, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate hinted that India are unlikely to make any changes to the combination. Ashwin said that Arshdeep can win the game with his four-over spell. He wants the management to work with the pacer instead of leaving him out.
"If someone has the talent, then you should work with them. It shouldn't be the case of him sitting out and Dube playing because he is a batter and can bowl a bit. In T20 cricket, bowling a good four-over spell can result in you winning the competition,” Ashwin said.
“Why are you writing his destiny, just because he can't bat? I want to say this to the bowling community. If we don't have pride within our community, then no one would take us seriously. If we are made to sit out, then we should be angry,” concluded the 38-year-old.
Arshdeep one wicket away from history, good record vs Pakistan
Arshdeep is India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is. The 26-year-old is one wicket away from becoming first Indian bowler to claim 100 T20I wickets. Also, he has a good record against Pakistan, taking seven wickets from four games at an average of 17.57. Only Hardik Pandya and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have more wickets than him in T20I clashes against Pakistan.
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