Just a day ahead of the IND vs SA 1st Test, there is a still a selection conundrum between Ravichandran Ashwin and Shardul Thakur. While the scales are tipped heavily towards Shardul, Harbhajan Singh has however put his trust and faith on Ravi Ashwin. Harbhajan went on to back the spinner claiming the South Africa will be uncomfortable to play spin as compared to pace attack.
South African pitches are distinctly different from pitches all other the world. While the debate continues with Shardul leading the charts to be the preferred 4th pacer in the team. Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has a different point of view. He claims that India should head into the game with 2 spinners (Jadeja and Ashwin).
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“For number seven Ravindra Jadeja but the biggest question comes at number 8 with Ashwin and Shardul available. I feel Ashwin should play at number 8 because you have Jasprit Bumrah for number 9, Siraj for 10 and Prasidh Krishna for 11,” Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.
In the Pre Match Press Conference, India skipper Rohit Sharma has emphasised how the pitch conditions are difficult to bat in the Rainbow Nation. He is a given say that India are likely to head into the game with 4 pacers. But with the pitch cracking after a couple of days, it can be extremely beneficial for spinners to wreak their havoc.
Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in the practice session.
– The GOAT duo is ready for South Africa challenge! pic.twitter.com/DNCphW22Na
— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) December 22, 2023
“But here I feel the conditions will be hot, the pitch will be hard, the bounce will be there and you have three pacers so I think India should go with two spinners. I feel South Africa would love to place pace so I think you should play on your strengths. I feel Ashwin should play but I don’t see that happening,” Harbhajan added.
A similar situation happened during the WTC Finals when Shardul was picked ahead of Ashwin. But Harbhajan has defended that decision and has claimed that now conditions are different and India should go with 2 spinners.
“The biggest debate is whether Shardul should play or Ashwin, this topic became a heated discussion during the World Test Championship. The conditions there were different because the ball seams on Day 1 so I feel Shardul was the right choice according to those conditions. There was a lot of grass on the wicket, even though he couldn’t make an impact I feel the decision was right,” Harbhajan concluded.
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