Former India off-spinner R Ashwin questioned England captain Ben Stokes’ suspect batting approach against spin after his dismissal to Australia spin legend Nathan Lyon in the second innings of the third Ashes Test in Adelaide.
Stokes’ dismissal was a major moment in a mammoth 435-run chase that England pursued admirably but fell short by 82 runs, conceding the Ashes to Australia for the fourth time in succession. Questions have been raised over the entire English side’s capabilities and approach after losing three Tests inside 11 days, but Ashwin probed if the captain has sorted out his own weaknesses too.
Ashwin, who has dismissed Stokes 13 times in his Test career, was elaborating Stokes’ approach while being dismissed by Lyon in the chase.
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“Ben Stokes has been dismissed by off-spinners for as long as I’ve bowled and seen. Is this question being asked? He is fabulous player with the right attitude. You cannot play spin as you play fast bowling . You can’t do so on the top of the bounce. The theory of playing spin is to get to the pitch of the ball. But fast bowlers, who generate lateral movement. can be played with some adjustment. You are not going to be troubled by getting out lbw. There are two things. You are watching the ball out of the hand,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
Ashwin also noted the increased tendencey of non-Asian batters to rely on the sweep shot against spin.
“The moment you do, you pick the line and try to defend it. You’re not picking what it’s doing and instead get to the ball. The primary aspect of spin is getting to the ball. If you don’t get to the ball, you are going on the backfoot and looking to score. I’m watching many western players like Ben Stokes, Ben Duckett and Aiden Markram sweep or reverse sweep because their defensive technique is wrong against spin. It’s not being addressed,” Ashwin remarked.
