After a long wait since January 2023, Ashwin ended his exile from SENA tests as he was included in India’s playing XI for the pink-ball test in Adelaide that started on December 06.

Surprisingly, the spin-bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar was excluded from the Day/Night tests despite making handy contributions with the bat and ball in the Perth test. Also, he showed his adaptability to pink ball cricket by scoring a quickfire 42 runs out of 36 balls, smashing 5 fours in the practice match against the Prime Minister’s XI. It is worth noting that the 25-year-old all-rounder was in his best form during the home test series against New Zealand by achieving a 7-wicket haul in the Pune Test.

Moreover, Ravindra Jadeja, who boasts an exceptional record in tests as a core spinner and a talented lower-order batsman wasn’t able to secure his spot in the playing XI.

Ashwin’s return marks the third change for the second test with the other two being the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. Three players who were part of the first test that include the names of Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, and Washington Sundar were benched for the day-night test.

Team India’s fielding coach Ryan Ten Doeschate explained that selecting Ashwin over Jadeja and Sundar was purely based on his records at the Adelaide Oval to add depth to the batting line-up.

However, the veteran off-spinner having bowled just one over went wicketless on Day 1 of the ongoing second test in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, which fueled debate among fans about Washington Sundar’s exclusion.

Let’s find out the main reasons why Ravichandran Ashwin was given the first choice in the pink-ball test over Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar.

Impressive Test Records at Adelaide Oval

Considering Ashwin’s red ball and pink ball test stats at the Adelaide Oval, he grabbed 16 wickets in 6 innings averaging at 30.43 with a bowling strike rate of 68.93.

Also, he is India’s second leading wicket-taker in tests (with 16 dismissals), ranking behind the former Indian captain Kapil Dev with 19 wickets at this venue.

Hailed as India’s Expert Spin Bowler in Pink Ball Cricket

With 18 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 13.83, Ravichandran Ashwin ranks as the leading Indian wicket-taker in the pink ball test. In comparison, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar have grabbed a single wicket in the day-night format.

Furthermore, scrutinizing his performances, the 38-year-old Tamil Nadu bowling all-rounder exhibited his best performance in the overseas pink ball test, which was the only day-night match played in Adelaide in December 2020.

He bagged 5 wickets in 2 innings against the Aussies, highlighted by his best performance of 4-55 in 18 overs.

Batters Find Challenging to Tackle Off-Spinners in Day/ Night Tests

The previous records show that off-spinners can produce huge variations in the day-night tests although fast bowlers benefit a lot with the pink ball. For example, Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon is the second leading wicket-taker in the pink ball tests ranking behind Mitchell Starc by grabbing 43 wickets in 12 matches.

Consequently, Ashwin’s past performances with the pink ball make him a prime choice over Washington Sundar as India’s core off-spinner.

Strengthen the Lower Order Batting Unit

Starting from Yashasvi Jaiswal to Rohit Sharma, the batting order upto No.6 position is set perfectly for the full-time batters. This results in leaving the No.8 spot only for the spin-bowling all-rounder.

As Nitish Reddy provided confidence by scoring instant runs batting at the seventh position, Ravichandran Ashwin’s ability to bat at the lower order was the only possible option that could have been effective on a 6 mm grassy pitch.

Moreover, Indian captain Rohit Sharma has decided to proceed with three pacers, a spin bowling, and another pace-bowling all-rounder. In such scenarios, there wouldn’t be any possibility of including another off-spin bowling all-rounder like Washington Sundar in the playing XI because these five players would easily secure their positions from No.7 to No.11 in the batting order:

Especially, with India’s weak batting performance on Day 1, the effective contributions from Nitish (42 runs) and Ashwin (22 runs) batting at the No.7 and No.8 spot, helped the team post a total of 180 in 44.1 overs.

Ability to Tame Australia’s Top Performing Batters

Recalling the moments of the pink-ball test in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2020-21, Ashwin’s ability to counterattack the top-performing Australian batters such as Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head, and Steven Smith in Adelaide was a masterclass performance.

Perhaps, the Indian team management would have expected the off-spinner to once again neutralize these Australian star performers at the same venue.

Final Review:

Australia’s Day 1 concluded with a total of 86-1 at stumps and are left trailing by just 94 runs after batting for 33 overs in the first innings.

Now, the entire focus shifts towards Indian bowlers, particularly on Ravichandran Ashwin to replicate his pink ball success and prevent Aussies from taking a massive lead that might help his team attain a much-needed victory in the ongoing Adelaide test.