Ashwin bamboozles Somerset batsman with a ripper in County Championship

In order to prepare for India’s upcoming five-match Test series against England, veteran off-spinner Ravi Ashwin signed with Surrey for the County Championship game against Somerset. The conditions in England are not known to be ideal for spinners and Ashwin is aware of the fact. Hence, the 34-year-old wants to get in the groove before facing the Three Lions at their own den.

Ashwin’s first day at the office wasn’t really sensational as the pitch at the Kennington Oval in London didn’t have much for the bowlers. However, it won’t be wrong to say that the Indian cricketer kept the opposition batsmen on their heels. He kept bowling a tight line and passed the outside edge on numerous occasions. Ashwin was eventually rewarded with the wicket of one-down batter Tom Lammonby.

Ravi Ashwin’s peach of a delivery

The 21-year-old was batting on 42 and seemed to have adapted to the conditions. However, he didn’t have any clue about Ashwin’s mysterious delivery. Lammonby left the ball which was pitched on good length but little did he know, his off-stump was shattered. It was indeed a brilliant delivery as the track didn’t have much turn to offer. Nevertheless, Ashwin showed he has more tricks up his sleeves to upset batters.

😍 @ashwinravi99 gets his wicket!

Watch Ashwin bowl here 👉 https://t.co/mz69ACW2wo pic.twitter.com/SlvYBWmkJ2

— LV= Insurance County Championship (@CountyChamp) July 11, 2021

That was Ashwin’s lone wicket on Day 1 as Somerset was 280/6 at stumps. With the pitch tiring with time, the off-spinner will have a more significant role to play in the upcoming days. Ashwin getting used to the conditions is certainly not a great piece of news for Joe Root’s men and they must be prepared to tackle turning deliveries even in overcast conditions.

Meanwhile, the off-spinner was last seen in the ICC World Test Championship final against New Zealand at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. Some questions were raised over his selection in the playing XI as the track was green and dark clouds were dominating the sky for the major part of the contest.

However, Ashwin defied all the odds and put up an exhibition of high-class spin bowling. He took four wickets across two innings which unfortunately weren’t enough to save India from an eight-wicket defeat. Nevertheless, the Tamil Nadu-born cricketer would be determined to take the visitors to glory against England.