VVS Laxman lauds Ravichandran Ashwin's intelligence for 'reinventing' himself as a player

Former Team India Test specialist  VVS Laxman has heaped praise on Ravichandran Ashwin, saying that the seasoned off-spinner is reinventing himself and is always looking to improve. Ashwin had gone past the 400 wickets milestone in the third Test against England at the Narendra Modi Stadium which India won by 10 wickets to take a 2-1 lead in the four-match series.
R Ashwin currently occupies the third spot in the ICC Test bowler rankings.

'I think he is a very intelligent person': VVS Laxman

"I think he (Ashwin) is a very intelligent person. When you are playing at the highest level, then it's not only about your skill, it's about your preparation, your planning and execution is so critical. So, he works out what are the weaknesses of the batsman. He plans those dismissals and that's why I think he is reinventing himself," Laxman said while speaking on Star Sports' show 'Cricket Connected'.

"We saw recently in the Australia series how he troubled, someone as great as Steve Smith, and that's another thing that makes Ashwin or any champion player special, that he wants to be the best and compete against the best," he added. Ashwin was a standout performer in India's remarkable 2-1 Test series win over Australia and his resilience was on show in the third Test in Sydney where he battled it out alongside Hanuma Vihari to help India walk away with a famous draw", the cricketer-turned-commentator added.

"78 Test matches for 400 Test wicket. Let the naysayers be! He's been absolutely phenomenal with the craft that he has displayed over a period of time and as he's growing as a bowler he's picking a lot of wickets. So, that question mark is also getting answered quite nicely," said former India batsman Aakash Chopra while praising Ashwin. "I feel that he's an absolute rockstar. He's one of the biggest match-winner, that India has ever produced. Of course, Anil Kumble will still remain at number one," the former middle-order batsman further added.

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Ravichandran Ashwin enters the 400-club

In the third Test match against England that was contested under lights at the newly-renovated Narendra Modi Stadium, 

the Tamil Nadu cricketer registered his 400th Test scalp during England's second innings when he had tail-ender Jofra Archer caught plumb in front of the wicket.

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By the virtue of this feat, Team India's Test specialist has now joined the likes of a few of his great predecessors to become the fourth Indian bowler to register 400 scalps in the longest format of the game. Ashwin with 400 wickets in 77 matches has joined the likes of his former team-mate Harbhajan Singh (417 wickets in 103 matches), legendary all-rounder & 1983 World Cup-winning skipper Kapil Dev (434 wickets in 131 matches), and, spin legend Anil Kumble (619 wickets from 132 matches to reach the 400-club in Test match cricket. 

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While he became the fastest Indian bowler to pick up 400 wickets in red-ball cricket, he is now the second-fastest bowler in world cricket to achieve this feat. Team India's modern-day Test specialist picked up his 400th scalp in his 77th Test appearance. Meanwhile, the record is still held by Sri Lankan spin legend as well as the highest wicket-taker in Test history (800) Muttiah Muralitharan who had reached the landmark in just his 72nd appearance in red-ball cricket.

(With ANI Inputs)