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Player like Ashwin priceless in the Test side – Kohli
- Updated: September 26, 2016
India’s Test captain Virat Kohli hailed R Ashwin’s impact and Ravindra Jadeja’s relentlessness after India’s 197-run win over New Zealand in the series and season opener in Kanpur. For a while now Ashwin has hovered around the top in the ICC bowlers’ rankings, trading it with Dale Steyn and James Anderson. He is the top-ranked Test allrounder. In India’s win he took 10 wickets for 225, including a six-for in the second innings. Jadeja, on the other hand, took a five-for in New Zealand’s first innings, scored 42 crucial runs with the tail in India’s first-innings and a quick half-century to set up a declaration in the second.
“Ashwin has been outstanding for the Indian team,” Kohli said. “If you see all the impact players in the world, he comes in the top three-four easily. There are quite a few players making big impact for their respective sides, especially bowlers. Bowlers are the ones I feel that win you Test matches, and Ashwin is one of them. The rankings – I’m not a big fan of them – suggest that Ashwin is the best at the moment.
“There’s no doubt that he’s been bowling wonderfully well for the last couple of years. He works very hard on his game. He’s a very keen thinker of the game. He likes to talk cricket. He understands the game very well, [he’s a] very smart cricketer, very intelligent. That shows in his batting as well. He understands the situation and plays accordingly. He knows when to get runs and when to play the situation out. So it’s priceless to have a cricketer like Ashwin in your Test team. He gives balance with both bat and ball. I would wish him all the best that he keeps nurturing his skill so that we can …
