India’s legendary spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has questioned pace-bowling all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy’s place in the playing XI in home Tests. In the recently-concluded Test series against West Indies, Reddy batted just once when promoted to no.5 and bowled just four overs. There was barely help for pacers on Delhi track and Shubman Gill felt that he should stick with spinners rather than handing the ball to Reddy. Ashwin feels that going ahead it should be Axar Patel who makes the cut in home Tests instead of Reddy.
“If this is Nitish Reddy’s role, I feel you can play a specialist batter or a bowler. You could play Axar Patel. What less has he done? He has been a match-winner,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“When does Nitish Reddy come into play? I am not saying you need an extra bowler; if not, then play a specialist batter only. Axar has done much better than Nitish in this role,” he added.
Ashwin trusts Axar’s defense
India’s next Test assignment is against current WTC champions South Africa at home, starting November 14 at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. While there is often much help for seamers in Kolkata, Ashwin banked Axar’s batting skills which should be taken into consideration when selecting playing eleven for next Test.
“Axar Patel has the best defense against spin. So, if you’re not using him, especially when you have Siraj, Bumrah, and a second seamer, then Nitish can play for batting depth. Otherwise, I don’t see the point. Nitish is a fine batter, but there could be a bit more clarity on his role,” Ashwin opined.
India Test captain Shubman Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir were asked about Reddy’s role in home Tests, especially when the conditions are spin-friendly. Both of them said that they don’t just want Reddy for overseas Tests but want him to gain experience at home as well.
Axar’s Test numbers -
From 14 Tests, Axar has scored 646 runs at an average of 35.88, including four fifties. He played crucial knocks in previous Border-Gavaskar Trophy at home. With the ball, he is lethal too, taking 55 wickets at an average of 19.34, featuring two fifers.