Batsman R Ashwin key player in Virat Kohli’s five-bowler strategy

Already he has opted for the more free-scoring Rohit Sharma over Cheteshwar Pujara, for the more fiery Varun Aaron over Bhuvneswar Kumar. And much like an Indian captain of the past, one with a rather more placid demeanour, he is convinced that playing five bowlers is the way ahead.

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He would have had time to talk about that to Rahul Dravid when he turned up to play for India ‘A’ but as he takes the field in Sri Lanka, he will need his team to believe in the idea and play with the responsibility such a move demands.
Playing five bowlers also means playing five batsmen, especially in a situation where the wicket keeper isn’t, or isn’t yet, a batsman who can bat in the top six. Inevitably when teams play five bowlers either one of them is a top six batsman.

Or the keeper is. Angelo Mathews does that for Sri Lanka, Mohd Hafeez did till recently for Pakistan and Corey Anderson, Mitchell Marsh and Ben Stokes are now filling in for their countries too. Since Kohli doesn’t have a top six man who can bowl, he has to find a bowler who can fit in there. And that is why, key to this strategy, is the role that Ravichandran Ashwin will play.

He looks a batsman. And in compiling two centuries from the lower order, it seems he thinks like one too. His average of 36 is very impressive for a No. 8, especially keeping in mind that he often has to bat with the tail. He times the ball as well as anyone and there is a most pleasing air about him.

You could argue his defence is a bit loose but he could just as well retort, and he does that as well as he bowls off-breaks, that he has to play shots with the field often spread deep. But the more he bats at number six, the more he will start thinking like one and if he can grow into the job, he will help the balance of the side greatly.

But it won’t be easy. A stylish cameo at No. 8 looks very nice because the mind is conditioned to seeing a different kind of player batting there. At No. 6, you are expected to bat a certain way and scores in the mid-thirties suddenly don’t look as impressive. Not many people have managed it because most of those who bat No.6 in Tests are actually top order people dropping a number or two not bowlers rising a couple of places.

But I believe the time is right to ease Ashwin into that role because India play in sub-continent conditions over the next 18 months. I also believe it is easier for a spinner to play there rather than a lead fast bowler who might bat with the tail and find himself short of energy with the ball.

It will, I suspect, also release Wriddhiman Saha from the pressure of playing as a batsman. In domestic cricket, there is little doubt he is a top-6 player but when you have played domestic cricket for a long time you sometimes carry those habits into international cricket. No.7 might just be where Saha finds himself.

In terms of the way he approaches a cricket match, Ashwin is not unlike Kohli and I think he will jump at the opportunity to play up the order and take on the twin role of the last batsman and the lead spinner. He is bowling well, he is secure and those are important things to consider while assigning greater responsibility.

But if Ashwin moves up from No.8, it will require someone else to play there. As long as Harbhajan Singh is deemed to be India’s second spinner, it is not a matter of concern but if Pragyan Ojha continues his form and demands that place, India’s tail will be a welcome sight for the opposition. For this composition to be employed consistently, 6,7,8 and 9 will have to score runs and that is always tricky. But no battle was won with the leader focussing on what he doesn’t have. Kohli’s heart is in the right place, now his players have to back him.