Ravichandran Ashwin once again tormented Bangladesh with a brilliant century on the first day of the opening Test in Chennai. R Ashwin's unbeaten 102, along with Ravindra Jadeja's 86, helped India recover from a precarious 144/6 and finish the day at a strong 339/6. Ashwin reached his hundred in just 108 balls, including ten boundaries and two sixes.
Ashwin came to the crease with India in dire straits, having lost their top order and KL Rahul for a paltry 12 runs. However, he and Ravindra Jadeja steadied the ship, with Ashwin playing a dominant role. The Chennai-born batsman attacked the pace bowlers with flair and then turned his attention to the spinners, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Shakib Al Hasan.
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R Ashwin's counter-attacking hundred haunts Bangladesh
Ravichandran Ashwin made his intentions clear against Shakib Al Hasan, launching a delightful six that thrilled the crowd. He reached his fifty in just 58 balls, showcasing his aggressive batting. Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja continued to accelerate, ensuring India crossed the 300-run mark and took control of the game for the first time on the opening day. Although Ashwin had a couple of close calls, with the ball narrowly missing the slips, he remained composed and continued his aggressive approach. He eventually brought up his hundred with a simple single, to put India in a good stead.
It's better to go hard like Rishabh does: R Ashwin
Meanwhile, at the end of the day, Ashwin revealed how he took cue from Rishabh Pant's batting style and went hard on Bangladesh bowlers to put India in a good stead.
“Always special to play here. Last time I got a hundred here, you [Ravi Shastri] were the coach. Thanks for that. Comes that I'm coming off a T20 tournament, I've always been giving the ball a waft. But on a surface like this, it's better to go hard like Rishabh does. It's an old-school Chennai surface with bounce and carry. When there is width, you can give it a tonk,” Ashwin said after the day's play.
Ashwin found a perfect ally in Ravindra Jadeja, who also played a crucial role in reviving India's batting after top-order collapse. Jadeja and Ashwin combined to stitch a 195-run stand to resurrect Indian batting. Ashwin was also full of praise for Jadeja and said there was a point where he was tired but the southpaw helped him get through the phase.
“Jadeja was of real help, there was a point where I was sweating and tiring but Jaddu helped me through the phase. He's been solid and one of our best batters. He told me we don't have to convert twos into threes, which helped me (smiles). Overspin will fetch bounce, spinners will come into play later. The new ball will do a bit tomorrow, we'll have to start afresh,” he added.
R Ashwin has established a reputation for tormenting Bangladesh in Test cricket. In their previous encounter in Mirpur, Ashwin claimed six wickets and scored a crucial 42, guiding India to a thrilling three-wicket victory. He also formed a valuable partnership with Shreyas Iyer in 2022.
This was Ashwin's second consecutive Test century at Chepauk, having previously scored a hundred against England in 2021. He joined an elite group, including Gundappa Viswanath, Kapil Dev, and Virender Sehwag, with the most centuries at Chepauk. Only Sachin Tendulkar (5) and Sunil Gavaskar (3) have scored more centuries at this venue. Ashwin remained unbeaten on 102 at the end of the day, helping India reach a strong total of 339/6.
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