"Ravichandran Ashwin doesn't deserve spot in...": Yuvraj Singh's remark on former teammate
Yuvraj Singh voices skepticism over Ravichandran Ashwin's suitability for India's ODI and T20 squads, emphasising limitations in batting and fielding despite the spinner's Test cricket success.
FollowFormer Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh has expressed doubts about Ravichandran Ashwin's suitability for a place in India's ODI and T20I squads. Despite Ravichandran Ashwin's remarkable success in Test cricket, earning recognition as one of the greatest players of his generation, there is skepticism about his efficacy in white-ball cricket. Despite participating in several World Cups in ODIs and T20Is, Ashwin's performance in these formats has been inconsistent. Yuvraj Singh, a former India all-rounder, candidly stated that the seasoned spinner "doesn't deserve" a spot in India's T20I and ODI teams during an interview with the Times of India.
While acknowledging Ashwin's prowess as a red-ball cricketer, Yuvraj highlighted the limitations Ashwin faces in the limited-overs formats, particularly with the bat and in the field. According to Yuvraj, although Ashwin is an exceptional bowler, his contributions in terms of batting and fielding are not substantial enough to secure a place in white-ball cricket.
"Ashwin is a great bowler, but I don't think he deserves a place in ODIs and T20s. He is very good with the ball, but what does he bring with the bat? Or as a fielder? In the Test team, yes, he should be there. But in white-ball cricket, I don't think he deserves a place," remarked Yuvraj Singh.
Yuvraj Singh and Ravichandran Ashwin were part of the Indian team that clinched the ODI World Cup in 2011. Despite Yuvraj's significant contributions to Indian cricket, Ashwin, in a video on his YouTube channel, revealed his shock upon learning about Yuvraj's battle with cancer.
"Yuvi used to cough, and he used to cough vehemently. I used to think that it is the pressure of the game and he is coughing it off and he used to cough in the middle. Literally, nobody had any idea, at least from the junior segment of the team that he was suffering from a serious illness," recalled Ashwin.
"When it broke out (the news of Yuvraj having cancer), I was shocked because I did not expect somebody who had just become Player of the series, in fact like I would say, 'Bharat ka Icon'. That literally was it. I think Sachin Tendulkar played an unbelievably big role in that Yuvraj Singh's World Cup. I call it the Yuvraj Singh's World Cup because you name it, he was there in that situation in the centre," added Ashwin.
