Ravichandran Ashwin reacts to statement by Vaughan
Former England captain Michael Vaughan sparked a discussion last week when he implied that despite having a lot of skill and resources, the Indian cricket team had not performed to its full potential. Vaughan says India hasn’t really done well, especially since they haven’t won any world titles in the last ten years. This conversation was started by Vaughan during a panel discussion on a show that took place during Australia and Pakistan’s second Test match at the MCG to which Indian skipper, Ravichandran Ashwin decided to react.
Michael Vaughan: “…They (Indian team) don’t win anything.”
During the discussion, he directed a query about the Indian team to former Australian batter Mark Waugh. “They haven’t won much in recent times. I think they are (an underachieving side). They don’t win anything. When was the last time they won something? With all the talent they have, all the skill-set (they should have achieved more,” said Vaughan.
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Ravichandran Ashwin reacts to statement by Vaughan
The prominent off-spinner for India, Ravichandran Ashwin, has now responded to Vaughan’s statement. Even while Ashwin acknowledged that India hasn’t been able to duplicate its bilateral series victories in ICC competitions, he maintained that the Test team has remained “among the best” in recent years.
“Michael Vaughan made a statement after the first Test that India is an underachieving team. Yes, we haven’t won ICC trophies for years. We call ourselves the powerhouses of the game. But the Test team has been one of the best traveling teams in the vicinity. We have seen many great results,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“After he said that, so many experts from our own country started questioning if India is an underachieving team. Frankly, it made me laugh. Picture yourself. Just reverse the situation. SA batted first in this Test after winning the toss. If SA had batted first after winning the toss in Centurion, wasn’t there a chance they could have gotten all out by 65? Even India was staring at the barrel at 20/3, thanks to Virat and Shreyas’ partnership from there to save us.”
“So, both cricket and Test cricket are differentiated by fine margins. In a country like India, where we talk cricket in every nook and cranny and consider the sport a religion, I feel we criticize and nitpick too much and get into unnecessary details. I think these are blinding us,” said Ashwin.
