Ravichandran Ashwin's T20I chances all but over

Ravichandran Ashwin scaling new heights in Test whites has been the story of Indian cricket in the past few months. But, as far as his chances of making a return to the T20I side is concerned, it’s all but over, at least for the foreseeable future.

India captain Virat Kohli made it clear that the 21-year-old Washington Sundar, who has had more impact with the bat than his off-spin in recent times, is the favoured candidate for the role in T20Is.

“Washington has been doing really well for us. You cannot have two players of the same discipline playing at one spot,” Kohli said on Thursday.

Sundar, in his 26 T20Is, has an impressive economy of 6.95 and has a tally of 21. Ashwin, who last played a T20I in 2017, has an almost similar economy of 6.97. In 46 T20Is, the veteran has taken 52 wickets.

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“So, unless Washy has a drastically horrible season and things go south for him…the question has to be asked by some kind of logic as well. You suggest where would you play Ash, when somebody like Washy already does that job for the team. It’s easy to ask a question but you should have a logical explanation of that as well,” a slightly irritated Kohli said to the question on whether it was the end of the road for Ashwin in T20s.

Yet, the question is not as illogical as Kohli made it out to be, simply because Ashwin had a stellar season at the 2020 IPL. His victims last year at the UAE included Rohit Sharma, Kieron Pollard, Quinton de Kock, Kohli himself, David Warner, Chris Gayle, Steve Smith and Jos Buttler among others.

With a tally of nine, Ashwin also has the highest number of wickets among Indian spinners in the powerplay overs in the last two IPLs. Compared to him, Sundar has four wickets in the powerplay. Both have a similar overall economy of 6.87 too in the IPL. But Sundar provides a better batting credential between the two. Last year, he scored 111 runs in 15 matches at an average of 18.5, compared to Ashwin's 37 runs from the same number of matches with an average of 12.3.

Kohli was also irked at the repeated fitness test failures by Varun Chakravarthy. The Kolkata Knight Riders player had a sensational 2020 IPL, where he picked 17 wickets in 13 games and had an economy of 6.84. He got a call up for the Australia tour but was found to have been carrying a shoulder injury. He underwent rehabilitation at the NCA and was named in the squad for the England T20I series but again failed the fitness tests.

“Individuals have to understand and appreciate the kind of system that has been created for the Indian cricket team. We should operate at very high levels of fitness and skill,” Kohli said. “You would always expect players to abide by what’s required to be a part of Team India and that there should not be any place for any compromise in that regard.”