Indian spinner Ashwin celebrates after taking a wicket.
Indian spinner Ashwin celebrates after taking a wicket.
IND vs WI: Team India is playing the second Test match against West Indies. Today is the last day of the match. India need eight wickets to win the match. In such a situation, Indian fast bowler Mohammed Siraj is confident that spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will present a significant challenge for the West Indies batsmen on the last day of the second Test.
Ashwin will get clean sweep
Siraj believes that Ashwin’s performance will play a vital role in helping India get a clean sweep in the two-match Test series. India has given the hosts a target of 365 runs to level the series. By the end of the fourth day, India had taken two wickets for West Indies for 76 runs, in which both wickets were taken by Ashwin. The West Indies team will have to score 289 runs to win on a difficult pitch on the fifth day today.
Siraj said after India declared their innings at 181/2 at the end of the day’s play, “The way the wicket is behaving, I think Ashwin will affect the West Indies batting. The ball is turning.”
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Ishaan is filling the gap of Pant
Siraj also revealed that India’s strategy was to bat aggressively in the second innings and set West Indies a big target early on. India’s batsmen especially Ishan Kishan played T20 style cricket and scored 52 runs in just 34 balls.
“Yes, Ishaan is an attacking batsman. Right now Rishabh Pant is not available, so as a wicket-keeper, Ishaan is able to make up for Pant’s shortcomings to some extent, if not completely. He has the ability to hit the ball long and hard. He has the ability to hit all around the ground. We had the edge in the first innings. So in the second innings, our plan was to score as many runs in less time and get more overs to bowl West Indies out after we declared. can achieve.”
Difficult to bowl in these conditions
Mohammed Siraj took five wickets in the first innings as India bowled out the West Indies for 255 in reply to the visitors’ 438, and he admitted that bowling was difficult in these conditions.
“I would rate my performance very highly, because taking five wickets on a flat wicket is not easy. I had a plan, especially when the ball started reverse swinging, I bowled with my line and length. My plan was simple… Since there was not much help from the ball, I kept it stump-to-stump and got some seam as well. When you bowl long spells in this heat and humidity, it is not easy. Then there was intermittent rain and after every rain break After frequent hums, it was very challenging.”
