Harbhajan Singh, Sourav Ganguly concerned over Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja’s ODI future

Harbhajan Singh has said that he is unsure whether Ravichandran Ashwin was actually rested or dropped by the selectors for the Sri Lanka ODIs.

Everyone has been conspicuous following the shock omission of Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja from the current On-Day International (ODI) squad against hosts Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, veteran Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has said that he is unsure whether Ashwin was actually rested or dropped by the selectors for the Sri Lanka ODIs. Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly too seemed to be unhappy with Ashwin’s axe following his commendable performance in the just concluded Test series against the hosts. Ashwin and Jadeja were expensive during the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 against arch-rivals Pakistan, leading to their loss. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: India vs Sri Lanka 2017 – 2nd ODI at Kandy

“I am not sure if R Ashwin has been rested or dropped. We have seen reports that Ashwin has been rested but at the same time in his rest period, he is going to England to play county cricket. So I don’t know what kind of rest it is going to be. I am not sure whether he has been rested or dropped,” said Harbhajan, as reported by India Today.

“I know where Harbhajan Singh is coming from because whether it is him or me we have seen such situations very closely in teams and understand the team dynamics. Ashwin’s performance in Sri Lanka has been in the Test matches. In sub-continent conditions, in Test matches, there are no doubts about R Ashwin’s place. But I have a feeling that Kuldeep Yadav is slowly going to get into the ODI side as a frontline spinner, especially on pitches which do not respond to the spinners when they go to South Africa, England and Australia and considering they are going to play the World Cup in England”, Ganguly said.

“I was present at the Champions Trophy commentating and I could get a feeling around that there could be a possibility in due course that both Jadeja and Ashwin don’t play on good pitches. Jadeja is a far better fielder, he can bat, he is a left arm spinner who is good in one-day cricket. So Jadeja is a package in ODI cricket,” continued Ganguly.

“We have been hearing Virat Kohli harping on fitness with Yuvraj Singh not getting past the fitness mark and R Ashwin is probably not the quickest on the field and all these considerations will come back. If Kuldeep Yadav keeps performing then I think there will be pressure on either R Ashwin or Jadeja and Jadeja’s fielding and batting could just be a bit more beneficial to him”, he added.

Speaking on Kuldeep Yadav’s performance, Harbhajan said, “It is a good opportunity for Kuldeep Yadav to showcase his talent and start winning games for India. He has done well in whatever limited opportunities he has got. He is different to the other spinners who are usually wrist spinners or finger spinners but Kuldeep is someone who bowls Chinaman and he brings a lot to the table in terms of variety so hopefully he will be good.”

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