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Team India veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was not named in the Asia Cup as well as the upcoming ODI World Cup squad for the Men in Blue. The decision-makers decided to stick with just one frontline spinner in the form of Kuldeep Yadav while entrusting all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel for their three-dimensional play. While the snub would have been a hard pill to swallow for Ashwin, the right-arm off-spinner is staying ready in case the national team requires his service.
"Even I have had my fair share of failures and successes. But I have tattooed Indian cricket close to my heart. If they require my service even tomorrow, I will be ready and will give my 100 percent," he said on his YouTube channel.
Ashwin was part of the Indian side that won the ODI World Cup in 2011 under MS Dhoni's stewardship. He then went on to play the 2015 World Cup in Australia as well.
Ashwin also had an interesting take on Axar, who seemed to have struggled in spin-friendly conditions during the game against Sri Lanka. The left-arm spinner, who replaced Shardul Thakur in India's XI for that game, bowled five overs and conceded 29 runs in the process. Axar didn't find his rhythm and was the least effective of all the Indian bowlers.
Reflecting on Axar's performance, Ashwin said that the left-arm spinner needs to bowl more and more overs in order to find consistency and confidence.
"At this point, we are expecting a lot from Axar Patel. I feel like we should give some space. If we don't have Axar, who is doing that role? Shardul. What are you expecting from him? 5-6 or sometimes 8 overs and pick 2-3 wickets," Ashwin said.
"Will Axar give you 10 overs every day? Maybe not. When the volume of overs comes down, he might end up pitching where he didn't intend it to. If he keeps bowling more overs and once he gets his confidence, he will be set," he added.
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