Nathan Lyon narrates how his obsession with Indian cricketer has driven his wife mad

Veteran India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is one name that every visiting team takes seriously, especially if they are slated to play Tests in the country. India and Australia are currently locking horns against each other in a four-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series. India won the first match in Nagpur by innings and 132 runs. Spinners played a crucial role in the game including Ashwin, who picked up a five-wicket haul in the final innings. 

'It drove my wife mad'

Australian spinner Nathan Lyon has now revealed that he did deep research on Ashwin's bowling before coming to India for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Lyon stated that he watched a lot of footage of Ashwin before the start of the four-match series. Lyon further added that he drove his wife mad by sitting in front of the laptop and watching old videos of Ashwin. Lyon said that he did the research to learn more about Ashwin and the game, adding "The best thing about this game is that we are constantly learning."

"I'm not going to pin myself against Ash. I think the way Ashwin has gone about it has been remarkable and his record speaks for itself. To be honest, I am a totally different bowler from Ash. I sat down and watched a lot of footage of Ashwin before coming over here. Yes, 100 percent. I've spent a lot of time sitting at home in front of the laptop, driving my wife mad. It's all about learning. The best thing about this game is that we are constantly learning, trying to grow and get better by watching your opposition and that's one of the biggest learning curves," Lyon said.

After Ashwin picked up a five-wicket haul in the first Test match in Nagpur, he went past the legendary Shane Warne's record for most wickets at home. It was Ashwin's 31st five-wicket haul in Test cricket, the seventh most in Test cricket and second-highest for an active cricketer. Only James Anderson has more fifers than Ashwin among active cricketers in the longest format. 25 of Ashwin's 31 five-wicket hauls came on home soil, which is equal to Anil Kumble's feat. The duo stands joint third on the list after Sri Lankan spinners in Muttiah Muralitharan (45) and Rangana Herath (26). 

Image: BCCI